Daily Screen Time Exposure in Dermatology Patients

Evaluation of Daily Screen Time Exposure in Patients Attending a Dermatology Outpatient Clinic: A Cross-Sectional Study

The aim of this study is to determine the daily screen time (smartphone, computer/tablet and television) of all patients who visited a tertiary dermatology outpatient clinic within a specific period and to evaluate differences in screen time duration among various dermatological diagnoses, to assess whether higher screen time exposure is associated with specific dermatological conditions.

All patients who visited the dermatology outpatient clinic of a tertiary university hospital were evaluated for the study. Patients aged over 18 years, attending to dermatology outpatient clinic, able to understand and answer the questions, voluntarily participated by giving informed consent were included. Data was collected using a structured, questionnaire completed by the dermatologist during the outpatient visit. The questionnaire consisted of three main sections:

1. Demographic data: age, sex, date of survey.
2. Clinical diagnosis: Dermatologist diagnosed one or more dermatological disorder during examination including acne vulgaris, atopic dermatitis, seborrheic dermatitis, rosacea, irritant contact dermatitis, viral warts, non-neoplastic melanocytic nevus, urticaria, pigmentation disorders, androgenetic alopecia, acrocordon, pyoderma, abscess, epidermal cyst, telogen effluvium, alopecia areata, etc.
3. Participants reported their average daily screen time over the past 6 months for: smartphone use, computer/tablet use, television viewing. Screen time was categorized as: 0, 0-1, 1-3, 3-5, 5-7, 7-9, 9-11, 11-13, 13-15, 15-17, 17-19, 19-21, 21-23 hours per day. Total daily screen time was calculated by summing up different device usage categories. Minimum and maximum values were summed separately.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients aged ≥18 years
• Patients attending the dermatology outpatient clinic
• Ability to understand and answer the questions
• Voluntary participation with informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients younger than 18 years
• Patients with cognitive impairment preventing questionnaire completion
• Incomplete data