Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology
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J. Am. Acad. Dermatol. · Aug 1989
Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical TrialTopical capsaicin treatment of chronic postherpetic neuralgia.
Uncontrolled studies have indicated that topically applied capsaicin may be a safe and effective treatment for postherpetic neuralgia. In a double-blind study 32 elderly patients with chronic postherpetic neuralgia were treated with either capsaicin cream or its vehicle for a 6-week period. ⋯ After 6 weeks almost 80% of capsaicin-treated patients experienced some relief from their pain. Because capsaicin avoids problems with drug interactions and systemic toxicity, we suggest that topical capsaicin be considered for initial management of postherpetic neuralgia.
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J. Am. Acad. Dermatol. · Aug 1989
Usefulness of case report literature in determining drugs responsible for toxic epidermal necrolysis.
To evaluate the usefulness of the case report literature concerning toxic epidermal necrolysis, we surveyed English-language reports published from January 1966 to April 1987, using epidermal necrolysis as a key word in the MEDLINE database. Of the 345 articles identified, 80 definitely or possibly contained individual case reports of at least 100 words; 59 of these 82 (72%) were available and reviewed. These 59 reports included a total of 73 separate cases of toxic epidermal necrolysis possibly related to drugs, which represents less than 5% of the case of toxic epidermal necrolysis that occurred in this period. ⋯ Given that only a small proportion of cases of toxic epidermal necrolysis appear in the case report literature, except to present association with drugs not previously reported, the contribution of case reports in providing an estimate of the relative risk of drug-associated toxic epidermal necrolysis is limited. Furthermore, our analysis suggests that the adoption of specific diagnostic criteria for and more uniform reporting of signs, symptoms, and therapy could greatly increase the usefulness of the case report literature. We propose a minimum set of informational and specific diagnostic criteria.
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J. Am. Acad. Dermatol. · Jul 1989
Case ReportsBullous pemphigoid and multiple sclerosis: more than a coincidence? Report of three cases.
In three patients with long-standing multiple sclerosis, bullous pemphigoid developed. The diagnosis of bullous pemphigoid was based on histologic findings, direct and indirect immunofluorescence, and Western blots showing IgG reacting with the 220 to 240 kD bullous pemphigoid antigen in the serum of three patients. Contrary to previous observations, bullous pemphigoid associated with multiple sclerosis was not different from bullous pemphigoid alone. Three similar cases have been reported previously, so the occurrence of bullous pemphigoid in patients with multiple sclerosis may be more than a coincidence.
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We report our experience in the treatment of major and minor aphthae with thalidomide. With doses of 100 to 300 mg daily for 3 months, a cure was obtained in 34% of cases, and marked improvement was evident in the rest. ⋯ Two patients experienced dysesthesias, which disappeared when the medication was stopped. Thalidomide cannot be prescribed to women of childbearing potential because of its teratogenic potential.