[Epidemiology of communicable skin diseases in school children of a rural area in North Ethiopia].

The pupils of 5 elementary schools in the Dembia-District in Northethiopia were inspected in serial examinations. The transmissible skin diseases head lice infestation, tinea capitis, impetigo contagiosa and verrucae vulgares are very common among the unselected children (5 to 15 years old). Only 16% of all children had not any infectious skin disease. The investigations showed the unfortunate conditions of the poor hygiene those are existing in the rural areas of a developing country in the tropics.