A Study of the Role of Family History and Total Serum Testosterone in African Patients With Idiopathic Acne Vulgaris Attending Kenyatta National Hospital

Abstract

A study of acne vulgaris in blacK Africans attending Kenyatta National Hospital was done in a case controlled cross-sectional study between October 1987 and March 1988. The study was composed of 32 male and 20 female patients with various grades of acne vulgaris. The patients were matched for age and sex to an identical number of controls who were selected from the surgical out-patients clinic There was no significant difference in the total serum testosterone levels between the patients and age-sex matched controls as measured by radio-immunoassay. There was no correlation between total serum testosterone levels and the severity of acne. There was no significant difference in the mean total serum testosterone levels when patients with acne alone and those with acne and hirsutism were compared. All the female patients studied had regular menstrual cycles. Family history was present in 67.3% of the patients with acne and in 40.4% of the age-sex matched controls. This was statistically significant. Severe grades of acne vulgaris were significantly associated with a positive family history.