Acta dermatovenerologica Croatica : ADC
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Acta Dermatovenerol Croat · Jul 2020
Review Historical ArticleSyphilis and Pharmaceutical Industry Marketing Between the Two World Wars in Croatia.
Between the two World Wars, the pharmaceutical industry strengthened its influence within the Croatian medical community. Due to the scarcity of professional biomedical journals in the Croatian language, larger pharmaceutical companies started to publish free promotional journals, magazines, and booklets which quickly became popular. They thus succeeded in creating a broad network of opinion leaders by recruiting physicians as authors, primarily writing on their experiences with application of certain drugs. As a paradigmatic social disease of the interwar period, syphilis stimulated the development of various marketing strategies used by the industry in these publications.
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Acta Dermatovenerol Croat · Jul 2020
LetterExpression of p16 Protein in Cutaneous Basal Cell Carcinoma: Still far from Being Clearly Understood.
Dear Editor, p16INK4a protein (p16) is an important tumor suppressor protein involved in the carcinogenesis of many human malignancies. I have read with interest an article by Donati et al. (1) in this journal, who investigated an expression of p16 and proliferation marker Ki-67 in cutaneous tumors. Among them, there were 27 cases of non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC), 23 of which comprised basal cell carcinoma (BCC), and 4 squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) lesions. ⋯ Taken together, the biologic and clinical aspects of p16 production in cutaneous BCC are still far from being clearly understood. I assume that a simple quantification of p16 expression in BCC by immunohistochemistry is not sufficient for a reliable assessment of the clinicopathologic significances. Further studies must be more focused on spatial distribution and intensity of p16-positive areas in tumor tissue.
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Dear Editor, Orf, also called contagious ecthyma, contagious pustular dermatitis, sore mouth, or scabby mouth, is a highly contagious zoonotic disease which is caused by a double-stranded DNA virus, ORFV (Parapoxvirus genus of the family Poxviridae) (1). The infection is endemic to sheep and goats, and humans are infected either through direct transmission from active lesions on infected animals or through contact with fomites (2). Orf is an occupational hazard and the population at risk includes shepherds, butchers, farmers, wool shearers, and veterinarians (2,3). ⋯ The knowledge of this diagnosis prevents multiple complementary investigations (blood tests, histopathology, skin cultures, PCR detection, and electron microscopy) and unnecessary overtreatment. Although a rare entity, the predominant hand involvement in professionals can have significant morbidity that reflects on their productivity and quality of life. This reinforces the need for using appropriate measures to prevent animal-to-human transmission.
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Acta Dermatovenerol Croat · Dec 2019
Topics and PRISMA Checklist Compliance for Meta-analyses in Dermatology: Journal Case Study.
Meta-analyses are usually the final step of systematic reviews and provide robust scientific evidence (1,2). The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) Statement is a useful tool to improve the reporting of meta-analyses (3). There are few data available on the current topics and characteristics of meta-analyses in dermatology or on the clarity and comprehensiveness of the information they report (4-8). ⋯ The meta-analyses mainly concerned psoriasis, which is consistent with a previous study on randomized trials in BJD finding that psoriasis was the main topic (5). A limitation of our study was that the meta-analyses included were published in a single journal, so the results are not generalizable to all dermatology journals. However, this is a novel study of PRISMA checklist compliance in dermatology meta-analyses, and we consider it important to validate and build on these results through larger studies including more journals specializing in dermatology.
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Acta Dermatovenerol Croat · Sep 2019
Case ReportsRowell Syndrome in Nigeria: Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Presenting as Recurrent Erythema Multiforme in a Young Woman.
Dear Editor, Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a heterogeneous autoimmune disease characterized by diverse patterns of auto-antibody production with multi-organ affectation. Cutaneous involvement, either alone or in association with other systemic illnesses, is one of its most common manifestations (1). Dermatologic disorders like malar and discoid rashes are quite suggestive of SLE. ⋯ When patients do occasionally present with recurrences of skin lesions in the spectrum of EM, Steven-Johnson syndrome, and toxic epidermal necrolysis in the absence of a definite inciting agent, undiagnosed lupus may indeed be present in some of these individuals and should be considered in the differential diagnosis. In conclusion, while it is very rare, SLE may present first with recurrent episodes of EM-like rash. Despite the various possibilities which underlie their association, prompt identification and treatment of SLE in patients presenting with EM is important to prevent death or irreversible organ damage.