The British journal of dermatology
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Primary cutaneous B-cell lymphomas (PCBCLs) are characterized by restriction to the skin and a variable but mostly favourable prognosis. Since 1997 the recombinant, chimeric anti-CD20 antibody rituximab has been used in patients suffering from non-Hodgkin's B-cell lymphomas. Different studies have shown that the effectiveness and safety in the treatment of patients with low-grade follicular lymphoma is comparable to or even higher than the standard CHOP chemotherapy. So far it has been unclear whether an extended duration of therapy leads to a benefit for the patients with PCBCL. ⋯ Intravenous therapy with eight cycles of the anti-CD20 antibody rituximab is a non-toxic and effective treatment for a subset of patients with PCBCL (relapsed, aggressive entity, old patients, multiple lesions) with a long DR.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
'Atrophic telogen effluvium' from cytotoxic drugs and a randomized controlled trial to investigate the possible protective effect of pretreatment with a topical vitamin D analogue in humans.
Hair loss from cytotoxic drugs is classically ascribed to the loss of fractured hairs (anagen effluvium). Telogen hair loss has also been described but some authors have denied any effect on the hair cycle. There are conflicting reports on a protective effect of pretreatment with a vitamin D analogue on cytotoxic drug-induced hair loss in rodents. ⋯ The cardinal effects of cytotoxic drugs found in this study were tapering of the proximal hair shaft and premature entry of the follicle into telogen, conflicting with the conventional view that affected hair follicles continue in anagen. There was a resulting effluvium of a mixture of tapering telogen hairs and fractured hairs. As entry into telogen is an integral part of the process, cytotoxic hair loss may be regarded as a variant of the conventional 'telogen effluvium' and we propose the term 'atrophic telogen effluvium'. There was no obvious protective effect on the hair loss of prior treatment with topical calcipotriol.
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The origin of psoriasis, a chronic inflammatory skin disease involving keratinocyte proliferation, immune disturbances and complex inheritance, remains unknown. Human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) are part of the normal human genome and their participation in the pathogenesis of various human diseases with complex genetic traits has been proposed. A possible role of HERVs in the induction of psoriasis was suggested many years ago. However, to date no study has searched for HERV expression in psoriasis. ⋯ In psoriatic lesions, HERV sequences of the W, K and E families are expressed and a new variant of the ERV-9/HERV-W family has been characterized. The possible role of HERV-related sequences in the pathogenesis of psoriasis is under investigation.
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Primary erythermalgia is a rare disorder characterized by recurrent attacks of red, warm and painful hands and/or feet. In a previous study we reported localization of a gene for primary erythermalgia to a 7.94-cM region on chromosome 2q. A recent study reported voltage-gated sodium channel gene SCN9a sequence variants in a family and a single individual with primary erythermalgia. ⋯ In this family with autosomal dominant primary erythermalgia, exclusion of linkage to chromosome 2q is strongly suggestive for genetic heterogeneity.
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Pediculosis capitis and scabies are common parasitic skin diseases, especially in resource-poor communities, but data on epidemiology and morbidity are scanty. ⋯ Pediculosis capitis and scabies are hyperendemic in the study areas and are associated with considerable morbidity. There is an urgent need to develop control measures for these parasitic skin diseases in resource-poor communities. This is the first community-based study describing in detail the epidemiology and morbidity of scabies and head lice infestation in Brazil.