Background/Aim: Autoimmune bullous diseases are characterised by the production
of autoantibodies to epidermal or subepidermal adhesive proteins. The
aim of this study was to determine the relationship between age and sex of patients
with the results of indirect immunofluorescence test in patients with
newly diagnosed bullous dermatoses.
Methods: The investigation presents a retrospective study of newly diagnosed
patients with autoimmune bullous diseases at the Clinic for Skin and Venereal
Diseases of the University Clinical Centre in Banja Luka in the period 2016-
2021. In addition to demographic data, the results of an indirect immunofluorescence
test in two titres (≥ 1:10 and ≥ 1:100) were analysed.
Results: In this study, almost the same number of patients with pemphigus
(45.2 %) and pemphigoid (54.8 %) was found. There were more women than
men in the total sample (p = 0.049). The average age of subjects with pemphigoid
was higher than that of patients with pemphigus (p = 0.001). 48.2 % of
patients with pemphigus and 51.8 % of patients with pemphigoid had a positive
indirect immunofluorescence test. A positive test for epidermal intercellular
substance in both sexes at a titre ≥ 1:100 is higher than a titre ≥ 1:10 (p = 0.029).
Patients with autoantibody titres ≥ 1:100 to desmoglein-1 were statistically significantly
older than patients with titres ≥ 1:10 (p = 0.047).
Conclusion: Number of patients with pemphigus and pemphigoid were similar,
with no difference in sex distribution between the two groups of patients, but
patients with pemphigoid were older than patients with pemphigus. The difference
between high and low autoantibody titres in both sexes was found only in
the group of pemphigus on epidermal intercellular substance and desmoglein-1.