[Piercing and tattooing: regulation is needed to reduce complications].

The increasing popularity of piercing and tattooing, and the resulting increase in complications, calls for legislation in order to reduce the number of incidents and accidents. The most frequent complications are local and systemic bacterial and viral infectious. Some are serious, such as gangrene and endocarditis.

[Teledermatology--importance of telemedicine and dermatology].

Due to a constantly improving technology the transfer of clinical images associated with histological images represents the actual answer to the expectation of Dermatologists. The authors give their personal experience regarding the use of telemedicine in Dermatology: discussion of clinical cases, histopathological presentation, diagnostic assistance, follow-up of patients, teaching, and research. Perspectives and development offered by telemedicine as well as the advantages of patient care, and of presenting research topics are mentioned.

Persistent acantholytic dermatosis: sex-related differences in clinical presentation?

We report the case of a 58-year-old man with a chronic papular eruption of 10 years' duration. Histopathology revealed focal acantholytic dyskeratosis. This condition is thought to represent a distinct entity which has been reported under several names and frequently referred to as persistent acantholytic dermatosis.

Pili torti with congenital deafness (Bjornstad's syndrome)--report of three cases in one family, suggesting autosomal dominant transmission.

Pili torti is a rare hair shaft abnormality in which the hair is flattened and intervals twisted at irregular through 180 degrees about its axis. Pili torti may occur as a congenital defect or as an acquired disorder (secondary to patchy alopecia from a variety of causes). When it is congenital, it may be isolated and determined by an autosomal dominant gene or associated with various rare syndromes, including ectodermal dysplasias, neurological defects and metabolic disturbances.

Anti-lamin-B autoantibodies in a patient with cold urticaria.

Anti-lamin-B autoantibodies at a significant level had been found on two occasions in the serum of a 56-year-old woman who was suffering from an apparently idiopathic chronic cold urticaria. Anti-lamin autoantibodies can be detected in various autoimmune disorders including hepatitis, vasculitis and peripheral blood cytopenia. In our patient, there was no other clinical or biological abnormality.

Cutaneous type of adult T cell leukemia/lymphoma in a French West Indian woman. Clonal rearrangement of T-cell receptor beta and gamma genes and monoclonal integration of HTLV-I proviral DNA in the skin infiltrate.

A 45-year-old woman, a native of the French West Indies who had lived in France since 1973, developed multiple cutaneous plaques and nodules in 1987. Histopathologic studies revealed dermal infiltration with mature activated T cells (CD4+, CD25+, DR+) with nuclear convolutions and epidermatotropisim. High titers of specific human T lymphotropic virus (HTLV)-I antibodies were detected in the serum.

Familial occurrence of KID (keratitis, ichthyosis, deafness) syndrome. Case reports of a mother and daughter.

Keratitis, ichthyosis, and deafness (KID) syndrome in a mother and her daughter is reported. Both patients showed the typical cutaneous abnormality of papillomatous hyperkeratosis, which gave the skin a grainy, rugose, spiculated appearance, together with keratitis with corneal neovascularization and a neurosensory hearing defect. Treatment with etretinate did not benefit the daughter.

[Epithelio-lymphohistiocytic tumor. Apropos of 3 cases].

We report three cases of epithelio-lympho-histiocytic tumour with very original histological features. The patients were young adults presenting with a nodular lesion on the face which had been present for several years. No recurrence was observed after surgical excision.