ABC of dermatology. Treatment of eczema and inflammatory dermatoses

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Gyrate erythema in a patient with dental radicular cyst

Nonspecific gyrate erythemas (NGE) are commonly associated with hypersensitivity reactions to exogenous or endogenous antigens. A case of NGE with clinical resemblance to tinea corporis in a patient with a dental radicular cyst is reported. Cutaneous lesions disappeared after surgical excision of the dental cyst. The clinical and pathological details are described and the relationship between radicular cyst and cutaneous lesions discussed. Earlier reports are reviewed and the possibility of a focal origin is emphasized.

Dermatologic emergencies

Some skin conditions, such as blistering diseases, guttate and pustular psoriasis, exfoliative erythroderma, reactive erythemas and acute contact dermatitis have an acute onset and require prompt intervention. Acute vesicular or weeping dermatoses are best treated with cool, wet compresses and topical lotions, whereas dry, scaly skin conditions should be treated with hydrating measures and topical ointments. Oral antihistamines and topical and systemic steroids are the mainstays of treatment for these severe dermatoses.

Tanning

Cutaneous pigment responses to ultraviolet radiation are outlined in this article. The responses induced by different wavebands are compared, and the protection against further exposure that is conferred by different types of tanning is discussed. The term "tanning" is used here to denote the spectrum of adaptive changes in the skin resulting from ultraviolet exposure and is not applied exclusively to increased melanin pigmentation.

Drug eruptions in an emergency department setting

The author outlines specific methods of evaluating drug reactions in terms of the appearance of the reaction and then lists the drugs likely to produce these reactions. Proposed mechanisms of these reactions are also discussed.

Tick-borne Borrelia infection in Sweden

Spirochetes were cultivated from 17% of 114 Ixodes ricinus ticks in the Stockholm area. Three strains of these spirochetes were selected for studies by electron microscopy. These three strains had definite morphological similarities to spirochetes of the genus Borrelia, as judged by the number of flagella, absence of cytoplasmic tubules, and dimensions. The three strains were not identical, but seemed to consist of two different kinds of cells, one with eight and one with eleven flagella. The three strains were also shown to react with a monoclonal antibody that reacts with Lyme disease spirochetes (Borrelia burgdorferi), but not with strains of other Borreliae, Treponemes, or Leptospiras. These results indicate the possibility of transmission of Borrelia spirochetes from ticks to humans in Sweden. The antibody response to one of the spirochetal strains isolated from Swedish I. ricinus was studied in 37 patients with the typical clinical picture of erythema chronicum migrans (ECM), in 45 patients with chronic meningitis (CMe) cured by high-dose intravenous penicillin, in 298 patients with post-infectious arthritis, and in controls. The antibody response was estimated by indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The antibody levels differed significantly between patients with CMe and healthy individuals (p less than 0.001), both with respect to serum antibody levels and CSF-antibody levels. The antibody levels also differed significantly between patients with ECM and healthy controls as measured by ELISA (p less than 0.05), whereas the difference was not significant as measured by IFA. Five of 298 patients with post-infectious arthritis had higher titers than any of the controls, and two of these five patients had titers higher than any patient with CMe or ECM. These results indicate spirochetal aetiology of ECM, and in some patents with CMe or postinfectious arthritis. As a diagnostic test for ECM, both IFA and ELISA were of limited value, since only 5/37 (14%) ECM patients were positive by IFA, and 14/37 (38%) by ELISA. Regarding patients with CMe, 23/45 (51%) were seropositive by IFA and 30/45 (67%) by ELISA. However, measurement of CSF-antibodies were found to be a more sensitive method than measurement of serum antibodies both by IFA and ELISA, since 38/45 (84%) CMe patients were positive by IFA, and 41/45 (91%) by ELISA. In addition, estimation of CSF antibodies was also found to be a more specific method than estimation of serum antibodies.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Gasoline contact burns

In the past four years, four cases of gasoline contact burns have been treated at the Detroit General Hospital Emergency Department. Signs are erythema and blister formation within 24 hours. Treatment is removal of contaminated clothing and washing the surface with soap and water plus open exposure of the wounds. Renal failure is not caused by skin absorption but may develop following inhalation.

Acne therapy: Neutrogena hand cream as an aid to topical treatment

Neutrogena hand cream has been used to modify the erythema, dryness, and topical irritancy caused by topical tretinoin and other topical acne preparations in a study of fifty-two patients.

Smallpox vaccination reactions, prophylaxis, and therapy of complications

Smallpox vaccination in the United States is a routine public health measure which has been under intensive review during the last decade. The most frequently occurring adverse reactions to vaccination are benign and require little or no systemic therapy. These reactions include accidental infection, erythematous and urticarial rash, and generalized vaccinia. Chickenpox occurring concurrently with vaccination presents no problem unless vaccinia has widely superinfected the chickenpox lesions. There is no risk to the pregnant woman who is vaccinated, but there is a slight risk that the fetus will develop fetal vaccinia. The vaccinia does not cause congenital malformations. Vaccinia hyperimmune globulin (VIG) in prophylactic dosage may be given to a pregnant woman who is traveling to a smallpox infected or endemic area in order to prevent fetal vaccinia. Vaccinia necrosum and eczema vaccinatum require vigorous systemic therapy with VIG, and often thiosemicarbazone. Post-vaccinial encephalitis, while frequently serious, has not been shown to be ameliorated by VIG therapy, although there are data which suggest VIG has some value in prophylaxis for encephalitis. Prophylaxis, prompt recognition, and proper therapy may reduce the fatality rates of these complications. Revaccination of patients who have suffered a complication is a frequent clinical problem. Revaccination of an individual who has had post-vaccinial encephalitis or vaccinia necrosum is contraindicated unless the risk of contracting smallpox outweighs the risk of the above two diseases. Revaccination of children who have had eczema vaccinatum is not contraindicated. Revaccination of children with a history of accidental infection or erythematous or urticarial rash presents no known or theoretically increased risk.