Facial Angiofibroma Severity Index (FASI): reliability assessment of a new tool developed to measure severity and responsiveness to therapy in tuberous sclerosis-associated facial angiofibroma

BACKGROUND

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is an autosomal dominant neurocutaneous disorder characterized by the development of multisystem hamartomatous tumours. Topical sirolimus has recently been suggested as a potential treatment for TSC-associated facial angiofibroma (FA).

AIM

To validate a reproducible scale created for the assessment of clinical severity and treatment response in these patients.

METHODS

We developed a new tool, the Facial Angiofibroma Severity Index (FASI) to evaluate the grade of erythema and the size and extent of FAs. In total, 30 different photographs of patients with TSC were shown to 56 dermatologists at each evaluation. Three evaluations using the same photographs but in a different random order were performed 1 week apart. Test and retest reliability and interobserver reproducibility were determined.

RESULTS

There was good agreement between the investigators. Inter-rater reliability showed strong correlations (> 0.98; range 0.97-0.99) with inter-rater correlation coefficients (ICCs) for the FASI. The global estimated kappa coefficient for the degree of intra-rater agreement (test-retest) was 0.94 (range 0.91-0.97).

CONCLUSIONS

The FASI is a valid and reliable tool for measuring the clinical severity of TSC-associated FAs, which can be applied in clinical practice to evaluate the response to treatment in these patients.

Spanish adaptation of the European guidelines for the evaluation and treatment of actinic keratosis

Current trends in our setting indicate that the prevalence of actinic keratosis and similar diseases will increase in coming years and impose a greater burden on health care resources. A long list of clinical features must be taken into account when approaching the treatment of actinic keratosis. Until recently, therapeutic approaches focused solely on ablative procedures and the treatment of individual lesions and did not take into account areas of field cancerization. Now that the therapeutic arsenal has grown, standardized criteria are needed to guide the optimal choice of treatment for each patient. The elaboration of evidence-based consensus recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of actinic keratosis generates knowledge that will help clinicians to deliver the highest level of care possible, standardizing decision-making processes and enhancing awareness among all the health professionals involved in the care pathway.

[Treatment of acne in daily clinical practice: an opinion poll among Spanish dermatologists]

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

the aim of this study was to determine the approaches used to treat acne in clinical practice by Spanish dermatologists. A secondary objective of the study was to compare the practices of Spanish dermatologists with the Acne Global Alliance treatment algorithm and develop a Spanish treatment algorithm for acne.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

a multicenter, cross-sectional survey was undertaken among 872 Spanish dermatologists. The study comprised 4 randomly distributed questionnaires. The first 3 contained the following case descriptions: severe acne associated with masculinization (case 1), mild comedonal acne (case 2), and moderate papulopustular acne (case 3). The fourth questionnaire contained 5 photographs of different types of acne and an algorithm containing various treatment options, from which dermatologists were asked to choose the most appropriate.

RESULTS

for case 1, 55% of dermatologists chose oral antiandrogens/contraceptive drugs plus topical retinoids or topical benzoyl peroxide/antibiotics. In case 2, 62% chose topical retinoids and, in case 3, 68% chose systemic antibiotics plus benzoyl peroxide. Combination therapy was considered the treatment of choice in all types of acne, with topical retinoids as the initial treatment option for mild and moderate forms and the preferred option for maintenance therapy.

CONCLUSIONS

in general, Spanish dermatologists treat acne in accordance with the Acne Global Alliance treatment algorithm. The varying opinions reported in response to open questions, however, confirm the need to unify criteria for the treatment of acne.

[Complications in dermatologic surgery]

Surgical complications are any deviation from the expected course of the surgical procedure. They occur as a consequence of one or more unexpected events, which can be avoided in the majority of cases through careful planning, a precise surgical technique, and correct postoperative care. Some complications, such as cardiac arrhythmias, anaphylaxis, and cardiorespiratory arrest, are life-threatening whereas others, occurring as a direct result of surgery, can affect the healing process and the final cosmetic appearance of the scar. We must therefore have not only the relevant training in dermatologic surgery, but also in basic and advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation. In this review we discuss the perioperative measures necessary to avoid the onset of complications in dermatologic surgery and we define the various complications that can develop.

[Update on the treatment of alopecia areata]

Alopecia areata is nonscarring telogenic alopecia of autoimmune etiology. It is estimated to be the presenting complaint in 2 % of dermatologic consultations, and can appear at any age although it is more common in young patients. Treatment depends on several factors, such as extent of the disease and age, and may be local or systemic. Local treatments aim to achieve hair regrowth, but do not alter the underlying condition, whereas systemic treatments can modify the course of the disease. In neither case does treatment provide a cure. In this article, we review most of the therapeutic options described in the literature for alopecia areata.

Granulomatous slack skin disease in a child: the outcome

Granulomatous slack skin syndrome is a rare clinical and pathologic disorder. Only 42 patients have been reported, one of whom we described in 1997--the only child so far reported. We now describe the evolution of this patient and the transformation of the disease into a peripheral T-cell lymphoma, and the complications resulting in the child's death.

[Capecitabine-induced hyperpigmentation]

Capecitabine is an antineoplastic agent used for the treatment of patients with metastatic solid tumors (breast and colon). Different adverse effects have been recognized, among which we find the muco-cutaneous ones and, specifically, hyperpigmentation. We report a case of localized cutaneous hyperpigmentation secondary to capecitabine in a woman that underwent surgery for breast cancer and was receiving this drug for a month. The start of therapy was associated with dysesthesias and hyperpigmentation of the hands and feet. The pathogenesis of such manifestations is unknown. Other reported cutaneous adverse effects associated with this drug involve the nails producing onycholysis, fragility, discoloration and dystrophy.

[Trichothiodystrophy: PIBIDS syndrome]

Trichothiodystrophy comprises a heterogeneous group of autosomal recessive entities. This fact gives rise to different interrelated neuroectodermal disorders. From a structural point of view these features are the result of the low tissue sulfur content. We report a case of trichothiodystrophy initially classified as Tay syndrome that based on clinical features, complementary exams as well as on the disease evolution was labelled as PIBIDS syndrome.

Is aberrant mammary tissue a marker for chronic alcoholism or kidney-urinary tract malformations?

BACKGROUND

Numerous publications describe the relationship between aberrant mammary tissue (AMT) and kidney-urinary tract malformations, individual/ familial alcoholism and sense organ disorders.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We investigated these possible associations and reviewed 72 cases observed in our Department during the past 3 years: 30 men and 42 women, 17 of them with bilateral AMT (7 men and 10 women) and 25 patients from 9 families. Diagnosis was made according to Kajawa's classification. A detailed family history was performed asking for individual or familial alcoholism, especially in the mother, in addition to blood tests and ultrasonographic examination of the abdomen and the kidneys.

RESULTS

We only found 1 family history of alcoholism in 3 families, but in the father, never in the mother or the affected subject. No congenital/ hereditary nephrourinary defects or sense organ disorders were found.

CONCLUSIONS

We believe that in our population AMT is not a marker for alcoholism, kidney-urinary malformations nor sense organ disorders.

Herpetic whitlow in an AIDS patient

This case confirms that cutaneous herpes simplex virus (HSV) infections in many AIDS patients is important not only for the difficulty in diagnosis of herpetic lesions, but also for the possibility that co-infection by HSV and HIV can adversely affect prognosis in these patients.

[Bullous pemphigoid in a 5-month-old infant]

After observing a case of pemphigoid in a 5-month-old infant, verified inmunologically, we comment on the clinical, histological, biochemical and immunological tests and review the benign chronic bullous dermatosis of the childhood.