Publications by authors named "Rita O Pichardo"
Article Synopsis
- Dapsone was originally developed for dyeing textiles but was recognized in the 1930s for its antibacterial effects, leading to its use in treating leprosy and dermatitis herpetiformis.
- The review discusses both FDA-approved and off-label applications of dapsone in dermatology, emphasizing its effectiveness as a first-line or adjunct therapy for various skin diseases.
- Dapsone is noted for its versatile uses, safety, and cost-effectiveness, with ongoing clinical trials investigating its potential in new dermatological applications.
Introduction: Vitiligo is a chronic, autoimmune condition characterized by skin depigmentation caused by inflammatory-mediated melanocyte degradation. Treatment of vitiligo is challenging due to the chronic nature of the condition. Ruxolitinib cream 1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic inflammatory condition of the skin that mainly affects the apocrine gland-rich intertriginous areas. The disease manifests as painful nodules, abscesses, and pus-filled tunnels, which can severely impact patient's quality of life. While diagnosis is clinical, successful treatment options for this condition are limited.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVulvar lichen sclerosus treatment consists of topical corticosteroids followed by maintenance therapy. Self-reported adherence to topical corticosteroids in vulvar lichen sclerosus is approximately 66-70.4% and adherence to chronic topical medications is poor.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Management of hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is difficult, as no single treatment is consistently effective, prompting this study to assess the impact of oral dapsone on patients with moderate-to-severe HS.
- A retrospective review of 19 patients treated with varying doses of dapsone over ten years showed that 15.8% experienced significant improvement, 52.6% had slight improvement, and 31.6% showed no change, with the majority also on additional medications.
- Although some patients reported adverse effects, mainly nausea, dapsone was generally well-tolerated, suggesting it may be a valuable option for treating moderate-to-severe HS.
Background: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease that may affect the genitalia in up to 60% of patients. This is a significant concern to patients; however, they may be too embarrassed to report genital involvement or seek help for it spontaneously. Information on preferred language that would put patients more at ease discussing disease in sensitive areas is lacking.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a debilitating disease and patients are prone to feelings of stigmatization. In our cohort, we assessed how feelings of stigmatization may relate to patient quality of life (QOL), depression, and social anxiety. Participants completed the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) to assess QOL, Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) to assess depression, the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation (BFNE) to assess social anxiety, and an adapted version of the Feelings of Stigmatization (FoS) to assess stigmatization.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLupus erythematosus tumidus (LET) is a rare photosensitive der-matosis that was considered a subtype of chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE); however, its clinical course and favorable prognosis led to its reclassification into another category called intermittent CLE. Although known for more than 100 years, LET's association with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), autoantibody profile, and disease prognosis is not well characterized. The purpose of this study was to describe the demographics, clinical characteristics, autoantibody profile, comorbidities, and treatment of LET.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHidradenitis suppurativa (HS) can severely impact patients' quality of life. However, its specific impact on participation in everyday social activities is not well characterized. We recruited a cohort of patients with HS to complete a survey assessing the degree of interference HS has on participation in social activities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Hidradenitis suppurativa patients often seek non-prescription therapies.
Objective: To determine the prevalence of alternative medicine use and characterize the differences between patients who report using alternative medications versus those who do not.
Methods: We surveyed 67 patients with hidradenitis suppurativa regarding demographics, alternative medicine use, disease severity, and quality of life.
Background: Systemic methotrexate (MTX) is a useful treatment for many dermatologic conditions, however, the risk of adverse events prevents its use in patients with minimal or localized disease. Topical application of MTX may be an option to avoid the systemic adverse effects of oral MTX.
Objective: To assess what is known about the efficacy and safety of topical methotrexate.