Psoriatics in Norway. A questionnaire study on health status, contact with paramedical professions, and alcohol and tobacco consumption.

Information on health status, use of prescription-drugs, contact with paramedical professionals and alcohol and tobacco consumption was obtained from a health interview survey, conducted by the Central Bureau of Statistics of Norway in 1985, of a representative sample of the Norwegian population. A total of 149 cases of psoriasis were registered in the study population of 10,576 persons, giving an overall prevalence of 1.4%. Among psoriatics, 75% felt that they suffered from chronic disease, while 66% suffered from one or more diseases in addition, indicating an increased susceptibility to diseases other than psoriasis, in psoriatics. 46% of the psoriatics used prescription-drugs, indicating that in many cases both the psoriasis as well as the other disease(s) were mild or moderate, not requiring therapy. Psoriatics had few contacts with rep-resentatives of the paramedical professions. Rather, there was a tendency to turn to alcoholic drinks and in larger amounts, among psoriatics. Fewer were total abstainers, and males with psoriasis drank more frequently. Among psoriatics, daily cigarette smoking was more frequent (48%) than among non-psoriatics (36%), the difference being greatest among females.