Dermatology and Cosmetics
Year:2016 | Volume:7 | Issue:3 |Papers Count:10

Background and Aim: Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a common contagious infectious disease. Because of the current limited knowledge about the etiology of this disease and its associated complications, especially nails lesions, we conducted this study to determine the prevalence of the nail disorders in children with HFMD.Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 84 children whom were referred to Bo Ali Sina Hospital in Sari, in 2013 and 2014, and were diagnosed as HFMD, were recruited using a census sampling method. Diagnosis of HFMD was made by a dermatologist or a pediatrician based on the clinical findings. Then, the skin lesions were recorded and the nails of all HFMD patients were examined to detect any nail disorder (onychomadesis, transverse ridging, etc.). Nail examinations were repeated fortnightly up to 8 weeks after the first visit. During this follow-up period, through using a questionnaire, the type of the nail lesions and their relationship with HFMD were recorded.Results: The mean±standard deviation (SD) age of the patients was 38.2±19.5 months, and 58.3% of the patients were male. At the time of HFMD diagnosis, 30 (35.7%) patients had hand and nail involvement. Thirty-one cases (36.9%) had toenails involvement. Onychomadesis frequency was higher 4 weeks after initiation of the disease in comparison with 2 weeks after the onset of illness (15.5%vs. 1.2%, P<0.001) and 6 weeks after the beginning of the disease compared to 4 weeks after the disease onset (29.8% vs. 15.5%, P=0.001) the frequency of nail involvement at 8 weeks after the disease onset compared to 6 weeks after the beginning of HFMD was decreased (17.9% vs.29.8%, P=0.007).Conclusion: It is necessary to take measures for early detection and treatment of involved nails in HFMD. Periodic follow-up visits is recommended too.

Background and Aim: Vitiligo is a chronic skin disease which manifests with depigmented patches as a result of absence of skin melanocytes. Vitiligo results in beauty problems which could cause mental disorders. The purpose of this research was to compare the tendency to suicide and stress in patients with vitiligo with those without any skin disease.Methods: For conducting this research, 30 patients with vitiligo who were referred to the Behsima Skin and Laser Clinic in Tehran during 2016 were recruited. Data were collected using Beck suicide scale ideation and Kohen stress questionnaires. Thirty demographically-matched individuals without active skin disease over the past six months were recruited into the study as the control group.Results: Mean±standard deviation (SD) of Beck suicide scale ideation (BSSI) score in patients with vitiligo was 3.67±1.33, significantly higher than 0.37±0.17 in the control group (P=0.02). Mean scores of stress in vitiligo patients was 28.33±9.20, which was also higher than the control group mean, 21.77±8.19 (P=0.005).Conclusion: Patients with vitiligo had more suicide ideation and stress than normal population. So, in taking care and treating in vitiligo patients, a special attention to the psychological effects of disease on the lives of the patients is recommended.

Background and Aim: Psoriasis is a complex disease with lifelong social and emotional consequences. It also impairs quality of life (QoL) and needs prolonged management. So in addition to suitable treatment, self management strategies are required to improve patient health and QoL. On the other hand, mobile phone applications have changed the interaction of patients with health services. The objective of this study was recognition of informative and educational parameters for the development of an application for self management of psoriasis.Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 100 psoriatic patients and 26 dermatologists were randomly selected. The investigation. Tool was a questionnaire developed by researchers including demographic and clinical data, education and management of life style, and capabilities of application for self management of psoriasis, which its validity was approved by a group of experts and its reliability was confirmed by test- retest.Results: The mean scores for importance of demographic and clinical data, education and management of life style, and capabilities of self management application were 80.6%, 85.7%, 88.8% by the patients, and 83.7%, 71%, and 75% by dermatologists, respectively.Conclusion: The recognition of self management parameters considered important by patients, as those involved directly with the disease, and by dermatologists, as experts in the management of disease, are essential in the efficacy and applicability of self management of psoriasis. Patients who know the benefits and risks of self management programs and have self-confidence are more compliant with treatment programs determined by their physicians, and manage their disease more seriously.

Background and Aim: Bacteria are one of the causes of nail infections. Although nail infections are not always associated with a major health problem, their treatment, particularly in immunosuppressed patients could be chalenging. This study was conducted to investigate the prevalence of bacterial agents in patients with dystrophic nails referred to mycology laboratory of Razi Hospital, Tehran.Methods: This was a cross-sectional study on patients with dystrophic nail. Samples were examined by both direct examination and culture. Blood agar and eosin methylene blue (EMB) agar media were used to culture and differentiate bacteria.Results: Of 700 dystrophic nail samples, 183 (26.1%) samples were diagnosed as onychomycosis. One hundred and four (56.8%) of the patients were female. One hundred and eighty-one patients had bacterial nail infection (25.9%), of whom 109 (60.2%) were female. Forty-six (6.6%) patients had both bacterial and fungul infections, of whom 32 (69.6%) were female. The most common detected agent was Staphylococci.Conclusion: Bacterial infections can result in dystrophioc nails. If these infections remain untreated they can lead to nail loss. In most cases, treatment of bacterial nail infections is easier than fungul nail infections.

Background and Aim: Demand for cosmetic surgeries is very high, especially in Iran and is affected by economic, social and psychological variables. The aim of this study was to compare the beliefs about appearance, irrational beliefs and presentation of body mass in individuals who demand and who do not demand cosmetic surgery procedures.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Shahid Sadoghi Savaneh va Soukhtegi Hospital in Yazd in 2014. The questionnaires were given to 150 individuals who were looking for cosmetic surgery, of which 126 completed questionnaires were considered eligible for analyses.Results: There was a statistically significant difference in BMI and beliefs about appearance between who demand cosmetic surgery and who do not (P=0.022, P=0.017, respectively). Those who were looking for cosmetic surgery had more irrational beliefs in comparison with who were not (P=0.017). Mean of irrational beliefs was higher in females than males, but there was no statistically significant difference in the means of beliefs about appearance among women and men (P=0.131). Also, the mean of beliefs about appearance and irrational beliefs scores both were higher among single people than married ones (P=0.049 and P=0.045, respectively).Conclusion: Gender, BMI and cognitive characteristics, especially irrational beliefs regarding attractiveness played significant roles in the those demanding cosmetic surgery. We suggest that people consult dietitians and psychology counselors before making decisions about undergoing a cosmetic surgery procedure.

Background and Aim: Psoriasis is a common chronic skin disease with high morbidity and economic burden for patients and healthcare system. The goal of this study was to evaluate the impact of age, disease severity, and therapeutic regimen on the quality of life of the patients with psoriasis who were treated with biological drugs.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 110 patients suffering from psoriasis whom were admitted to the psoriasis clinic in Razi Hospital, Tehran, Iran in 2015 and 2016. The Persian version of the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) questionnaire was used to evaluate patients' quality of lives. Using IBM SPSS Statistics (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA) version 22, descriptive and inferential statistics methods were applied to summarize and present the collected data. Chi square test was used for making comparisons.Results: Seventy-four male patients and 36 female patients were enrolled. The mean age of the participants was 38.8 (range: 18 to 73) years. DLQI scores had a normal distribution and a mean ± standard deviation (SD) equals to 6.51±6.66. The correlations between age and disease severity, quality of life and age, as well as quality of life and disease severity, and quality of life and treatment were not significant (P>0.05).Conclusion: It seems that the quality of lives of the patients were not affected by the age, severity of the disease, and therapeutic regimen of biological drugs.

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is a solution derived from whole blood that is enriched in the platelet fraction. Platelets serve as a reservoir of growth factors and cytokines. When platelets are activated in vivo, signaling molecules are released into the immediate microenvironment and activate receptors for various pathways. PRP has been applied to bedsores to promote healing. Over the last decade, it has been used as a valuable therapeutic method in various specialties such as maxillofacial surgery, plastic surgery, orthopedics and sports medicine. Only recently has PRP been utilized for dermatologic purposes, psrticularly, for the treatment of male and female pattern hair loss.In this review, we discuss molecular and cellular pathways up-regulated by PRP important in hair folliculogenesis, and examine clinical evidence from all previously published studies involving the use of PRP for pattern hair loss.