Dermatology Research and Practice最新文献

Background: Alopecia areata (AA) is a common form of noncicatricial hair loss of unknown cause, affecting 0.1-0.2% of the general population. Most evidence supports the hypothesis that it is disease of the hair follicle of autoimmune nature mediated by T-cells, with important cytokine role. Objective of the Study. The objective of this study is to study the association and changes in serum levels of interleukin-15 (IL-15) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in patients with AA in relation to the type, activity, and disease duration. Patients and Methods. Thirty-eight patients with AA and 22 individuals without the disease as controls were enrolled in this case-controlled study conducted in the Department of Dermatology in the Al-Kindy Teaching Hospital and Baghdad Medical City, Iraq, during a period from the 1st of April 2021 to the 1st of December 2021. Serum concentrations of IL-15 and TNF-α assessed using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Results: The mean serum concentration values for IL-15 and TNF-α were higher significantly in patients with AA than in controls (2.35 versus 0.35 pg/mL and 50.11 versus 20.92 pg/mL, respectively). IL-15 and TNF-α showed no statistically significant differences in level in terms of the type, duration, and activity of the disease, but TNF-α significantly higher in those with totalis-type than in other types.

Conclusion: Both IL-15 and TNF-α are markers for alopecia areata. The level for these biomarkers was not affected by duration or disease activity, but it was affected by the type of disease, as the concentrations of IL-15 and TNF-α were higher in patient with Alopecia totalis than in other types of Alopecia.

Background: Lichen planopilaris (LPP) is a rare inflammatory disorder of the scalp that causes cicatricial alopecia. No therapeutic approach has been approved for this disease due to the rare frequency. Methotrexate and corticosteroid are commonly considered second- or third-line therapy. The efficacy of a combination of methotrexate and corticosteroid has been reported in some dermatological and immunological diseases. However, the efficacy of this combination in LPP is not clear. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the impact of methotrexate alone and in combination with corticosteroid on LPP.

Materials and methods: This randomized clinical trial was performed on 28 patients who referred to the dermatology clinic affiliated with Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran during February 2015-December 2016, and 24 of them completed the trials. Fourteen patients received 15 mg methotrexate per week alone and the other fourteen subjects received 200 mg prednisolone plus 15 mg methotrexate per week. The primary outcome was Lichen planopilaris activity index (LPPAI) score. Moreover, we evaluated photographic changes and symptoms during the study.

Results: The mean of LPPAI in both groups decreased during the follow-up with a similar pattern of LPPAI changes in both groups. No statistically significant difference was found between the two intervention groups regarding the LPPAI score. We found no difference in the symptoms and photographic assessments in methotrexate and combination therapy groups during follow-up. In both groups, exclusively one adverse effect was reported.

Conclusions: Our results showed that methotrexate therapy with and without corticosteroids had similar efficacy and safety.

Background: Attention to the administration of probiotics for the treatment of psoriasis has recently increased.

Aim: In the present study, improvements in dermatology life quality index (DLQI), psoriasis area severity index (PASI), and visual analogue scale (VAS) scores in the psoriasis patients receiving Lactocare® probiotic were compared to psoriasis patients receiving placebo.

Methods: A total of 52 psoriasis patients were included in this study and randomly divided into treatment and placebo (control) groups. The control group received topical hydrocortisone associated with placebo; in the treatment group, Lactocare® was administrated orally associated with hydrocortisone. The mean of VAS, DLQI, and PSAI scores was recorded and evaluated pretreatment and post-treatment in both groups for 3 months. The mean of the scores in the control groups was compared to the treatment group. Intragroup analysis was preformed with a comparison of the mean of these scores at baseline 4-, 8-, and 12-weeks post-treatment.

Results: In the treatment group, a significant decrease was seen in PASI, VAS, and DLQI scores compared to the control group on week 12 post-treatment.

Conclusion: Oral administration of Lactocare® probiotic (two times daily) associated with administration of topical hydrocortisone resulted in the improvement of PASI, DLQI, and VAS scores in the patients with psoriasis after 12 weeks of treatment. PASI reduction occurred in all patients who received probiotics.

Fordyce angiokeratoma is a benign lesion commonly developing on the scrotal skin. The incidence increases with age. About half of these lesions may be symptomatic and frequently cause itching and bleeding. Although the treatment is not always considered necessary, several treatment methods are used for symptomatic cases, especially for cosmetic purposes. Treatment options include surgical excision, laser ablation, electrocoagulation, cryotherapy, and sclerotherapy. The most widely used methods are electrocoagulation and cryotherapy. Although these two methods are similarly effective and safe, there are differences in means of patient comfort and cosmetic outcomes. Patient comfort can be defined as pain management during the procedure and the healing period. Bleeding and wound infection are other parameters that may decrease patient comfort. Patients would prefer treatment methods with less or no pain and shorter recovery periods, healthcare providers, and insurance. The cosmetic result is another critical issue, especially for patients with multiple lesions. Treatment methods avoiding genital scars are more likely to meet the aesthetic demands of the patients.

Chemical substances used during batik processing may affect the physiological function of the batik worker's skin barrier. This study assessed the level of transepidermal water loss (TEWL), skin hydration, and skin acidity in 61 batik workers from the batik center in Paseseh village, Tanjung Bumi subdistrict, Madura Island, Indonesia. Forty-five batik workers involved in dry work including drawing patterns on the cloth with wax and sixteen batik workers involved in wet work including dyeing the cloth with a dye bath were included in this study. The mean TEWL level in the dry work section was 59.87 ± 11.94 g/m²/h on the palmar and 29.00 ± 13.09 g/m²/h on the dorsal side of the hand, while the mean TEWL in the wet work section were 47.39 ± 9.66 g/m²/h on the palmar and 37.07 ± 10.00 g/m²/h on the dorsal side of the hand. The mean skin hydration level in the dry work section was 49.80 ± 19.16 arbitrary units (a.u.) for the palmar side and 52.77 ± 16.21 a.u. for the dorsal side of the hand, while the mean levels of skin hydration in the wet work section were 47 ± 12.73 a.u. and 62.94 ± 10.09 a.u. for palmar and dorsal side, respectively. The mean levels of skin acidity in the dry work section were 5.45 ± 0.19 for the palmar side and 5.30 ± 0.20 for the dorsal side of the hand, while the wet work section had 5.30 ± 0.19 and 5.10 ± 0.19 for the palmar and dorsal side of the hand, respectively. The TEWL levels were found to be higher on the palmar side of the hand in both the dry work and wet work sections, which was consistent with the measurement of skin hydration levels that were lower on the palmar side of the hand. The mean skin pH levels for both work sections were considered within the normal range.

Objective: There is insufficient evidence to generate skin cancer screening guidelines at the population level, resulting in arbitrary variation in patient selection for screening skin examinations. This study was aimed at developing an easy-to-use predictive model of nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC) risk on screening total body skin examination (TBSE).

Methods: This epidemiologic assessment utilized data from a prospective, multicenter international study from primarily academic outpatient dermatology clinics. Potential predictors of NMSC on screening TBSE were identified and used to generate a multivariable model that was converted into a point-based scoring system. The performance characteristics of the model were validated in a second data set from two healthcare institutions in the United States.

Results: 8,501 patients were included. Statistically significant predictors of NMSC on screening TBSE included age, skin phototype, and history of NMSC. A multivariable model and point-based scoring system using these predictors exhibited high discrimination (AUC = 0.82).

Conclusion: A simple three-variable model, abbreviated as CAP (cancer history, age, phototype) can accurately predict the risk of NMSC on screening TBSE by dermatology. This tool may be used in clinical decision making to enhance the yield of screening TBSE.

Background: Acne is the most common inflammatory skin disease in adolescence. It is also prevalent in adults, especially females. The disease has a considerable impact on health-related quality of life. Many studies have reported the negative impact of acne on patients due to skin disfigurement, ineffective treatment, and adverse effects of the treatment. Numerous factors contribute towards nonadherence to therapy. Summary. This review discusses the various factors that are related to treatment nonadherence such as ineffective therapy, adverse effects with topical pharmacotherapy such as skin irritation and erythema as well as patient-related factors such as lack of knowledge of disease and a poor patient-physician relationship. Various methods are being adopted to increase adherence to treatments. Increased adherence to acne therapy has been associated with the use of dermocosmetics, such as moisturizers and cleansers. Encouraging the use of dermocosmetics in synergy with pharmacological regimens could support improved treatment adherence resulting in better clinical outcomes for acne patients.

Conclusion: Dermocosmetics as an adjunct to pharmacological regimens has the potential to improve clinical outcomes by increasing treatment adherence in patients with acne.

Introduction: Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is a common occupational disease. Its diagnosis is essentially based on interrogation and patch tests. However, commercially available batteries are sometimes not appropriate for the working conditions and the handled products, which must then be tested. In Tunisia, no previous study has focused on the contribution of patch tests with handled products in the workplace. The objective of this study is to establish the sociodemographic and occupational profile of the patients benefiting from patch tests with handled products in the workplace to identify the characteristics of these products as well as to evaluate the relevance of their positivity and their contributions in terms of aetiological diagnosis of occupational ACD.

Methods: This is a retrospective descriptive epidemiological study conducted for a period of 10 years from January 1^st, 2006, to December 31, 2015, among patients exercising a professional activity and consulting the Dermato-Allergology Unit of the Occupational Medicine ward of the University Hospital Farhat Hached of Sousse for the exploration of ACD.

Results: During the study period, 113 patients received patch tests of handled products in the workplace with a prevalence of 7.3% of patch-tested patients during the same period. The mean age was 35.79 ± 9.45 years with a male predominance (sex ratio = 1.35). The most represented activity sectors were the health sector in 30.1% and the textile sector in 21.2%. The majority of patients were professionally active (61.9% of the study population) with an average professional seniority of 10.28 ± 8.49 months. In total, 138 patch tests with handled products were carried out of which 46 tests were positive (33.3%). After the analytical study, variables independently significantly associated with the positivity of patch tests with handled products in the workplace were the male gender and the working in the plastics industry. An occupational disease was declared to the National Health Insurance Fund for 8 patients, i.e., 7.1% of cases.

Conclusion: Patch tests with handled products in the workplace can provide strong arguments for the professional origin of the ACD.