An ultrastructural comparison of dermo-epidermal separation techniques.

Dermo-epidermal separation through the lamina lucida is an essential technique for immunoblotting studies and for the diagnostic immunofluorescence of autoimmune bullous diseases. The most widely used methods of producing skin separation in the laboratory are suction blister induction and incubation in 1 molar sodium chloride. More recently the use of a proteolytic enzyme, thermolysin, has been described for this purpose.

Itraconazole in the management of chronic dermatophytosis.

Fifty-five patients with griseofulvin-unresponsive dermatophytosis caused by Trichophyton rubrum were treated with itraconazole. They had either tinea corporis or "dry type" infections of the palms, soles, or nails. The following sites were affected: trunk (12 infections), soles (47), toe webs (52), palms (26), fingernails (29), and toenails (42).

Neutrophil zinc levels in psoriasis and seborrhoeic dermatitis.

The median zinc content of neutrophils was significantly reduced in 16 patients with psoriasis in comparison to both normal controls and six patients with seborrhoeic dermatitis (P less than 0.05). This reduction was unrelated to the extent of skin involvement.

Benign lymphangioendothelioma.

We have studied eight cases of an acquired lymphatic endothelial lesion for which we propose the name "benign lymphangioendothelioma." The lesions developed as solitary, slowly extending, erythematous macules and plaques, usually occurring on the extremities or the shoulders in adolescents or adults. The characteristic histopathologic feature is permeation of the dermal collagen by flattened, endothelium-lined channels and spaces.

Subcutaneous xanthomatosis.

A patient with multiple subcutaneous xanthomata in whom there were only minor abnormalities of the fasting serum lipid profile is described. To our knowledge, this is only the second published case of subcutaneous xanthomatosis.

The heterogeneity of Jessner's lymphocytic infiltration of the skin. Immunohistochemical studies suggesting one form of perivascular lymphocytoma.

Seventeen patients (six women and 11 men) with Jessner's lymphocytic infiltration of the skin were studied. Nineteen biopsy specimens were analyzed with the following monoclonal antibodies: UCHL1 (T cells), 4KB5, L26 (B cells), LN1 (germinal center B cells), and BerH2 (Ki-1+ cells). Routine direct immunofluorescence was performed on 15 specimens.

A study of factor XIIIa and MAC 387 immunolabeling in normal and pathological skin.

Immunolabeling with two new antibodies, Factor XIIIa and MAC 387, has been studied in routinely processed biopsy specimens of normal skin, subcutaneous tissues, lymph nodes, and a variety of pathological conditions. These presumptive cell markers of the monocyte-macrophage lineage appear to label totally different and possibly mutually exclusive subsets of cells. In normal skin, Factor XIIIa labeled fixed dermal connective tissue cells, emphasizing their dendritic morphological appearance.

Oedemerid blister beetle dermatosis: a review.

Blister beetle dermatosis is a distinctive vesiculobullous eruption that occurs after contact with three major groups of beetles (Order: Coleoptera). It is caused by a vesicant chemical contained in the body fluids of the beetles. The smallest and least known family is the Oedemeridae.

Multinucleate cell angiohistiocytoma: an acquired vascular anomaly to be distinguished from Kaposi's sarcoma.

Multinucleate cell angiohistocytoma is a newly described benign vascular condition that usually arises on the extremities of women over the age of 40 as discrete grouped violaceous erythematous papules, often mimicking Kaposi's sarcoma. Of 10 patients, nine were women aged between 37-66 (average 51.5) years at the onset of their condition.

Immediate and delayed photocontact dermatitis from isopropyl dibenzoylmethane.

Immediate and delayed photocontact dermatitis from the UVA absorber isopropyl dibenzoylmethane is described in 1 patient. In a dose response study in a 2nd patient with delayed photocontact dermatitis, the minimal dose of UVA needed to elicit a positive photopatch to isopropyl dibenzoylmethane 2% was determined to be 2 J/cm2.

Azathioprine treatment in chronic actinic dermatitis: a double-blind controlled trial with monitoring of exposure to ultraviolet radiation.

Oral azathioprine was compared with placebo in a double-blind controlled trial of therapy in chronic actinic dermatitis (CAD), a rare eczematous photodermatosis. Eighteen severely affected patients were randomly allocated to azathioprine 50 mg t.d.

Characterization of factor XIIIa positive dermal dendritic cells in normal and inflamed skin.

The immunocytochemical identification and characterization of indigenous dermal dendritic cells (dermal dendrocytes) using a rabbit polyclonal antibody to clotting enzyme factor XIII subunit A (FXIIIa) was carried out on normal and inflamed human cutaneous tissue. The immunophenotype of FXIIIa positive dendritic cells was analysed with a panel of 18 monoclonal antibodies using immunoperoxidase and double immunofluorescence staining techniques. The antibody against FXIIIa detected highly dendritic dermal cells located particularly in the upper reticular and papillary dermis.

X-linked dominant Conradi-Hünermann syndrome presenting as congenital erythroderma.

A family with Conradi-Hünermann syndrome was identified after a scaly, erythrodermic neonate was seen. Although examination of the female infant yielded no specific findings suggestive of the syndrome, her mother and maternal great-grandmother had features that allowed the diagnosis to be made. Only after 5 months did the streaky hyperkeratotic pattern characteristic of the syndrome develop in the child.

Soluble oil dermatitis: a follow-up study.

A pilot follow-up study of patients with soluble oil dermatitis was designed to investigate the effects on prognosis of aetiology and of stopping working with soluble oils. A questionnaire was sent to 121 machine operators who had been diagnosed over a 5-year period. Life table analysis of the 100 replies (83%) revealed a poor prognosis both for those who had continued to work with soluble oils and for those who had stopped.

Outcome of carbon dioxide laser therapy for persistent cutaneous viral warts.

Twenty-two adults with persistent, symptomatic viral warts on the hands or feet which had failed to respond to conventional therapy were treated by carbon dioxide (CO2) laser ablation under local anaesthesia. Four patients did not return for follow-up treatment. Of the remaining 18 patients, 12 had plantar warts, the other six had warts on the hands that were mainly periungual.

Naevoid psoriasis.

A six-year-old boy presented with an eruption comprising multiple psoriasiform plaques, arranged in linear bands distributed along the lines of Blaschko and confined to the left side of the body. We believe that the eruption is true psoriasis, occurring in an unusual naevoid distribution. The existence of a genuinely naevoid form of psoriasis has frequently been debated, and has tended to be discounted.

Familial keratoses of actinic distribution associated with internal malignancy and cellular hypersensitivity to UVA.

In members of a family there appeared to be an association between the development of cutaneous pigmented keratoses in sun-exposed sites, and the later evolution of internal malignancies, particularly carcinoma of the uterus. Affected individuals were not clinically photosensitive, but their fibroblasts demonstrated gross cytopathic changes, low survival indices and an increased frequency of DNA single strand breaks following exposure to long-wave ultraviolet radiation (UVA). These clinical and cellular features appear to identify an unrecognized syndrome that may not be uncommon.

Sunbed-induced pseudoporphyria.

The clinical details of four fair-skinned women with recurrent blistering and skin fragility are presented. All had considerable sun-exposure and had used sunbeds for years. Specific causes of bullous dermatoses including drug ingestion, porphyria, cutaneous amyloidosis and epidermolysis bullosa acquisita were excluded.