Infective skin conditions in an adult sea-going population.

Infective skin conditions represent a significant element of the caseload for sea-going and shore-side clinicians. They are common within the wider military setting due to the frequent requirement to live in close proximity to others in conditions which favour the spread of skin and soft tissue infections (SSTI). Within the UK civilian population, 24% of individuals see their family doctor for skin conditions each year, accounting for 13 million primary care consultations annually. Of these, almost 900,000 were referred to dermatologists in England in 2009-2010 and resulted in 2.74 million secondary care consultations. Several recent articles have highlighted the problem of Panton-Valentine Leukocidin Staphylococcus aureus (PVL-SA) infection and carriage in sailors on submarines, and soldiers deployed to Afghanistan. However, the majority of published articles relate to land-based military personnel. This article aims to provide an overview of the most common infective skin conditions presenting among Naval personnel (based on the authors' experience), illustrated by several case studies, together with an approach to their diagnosis and management.