No abstract

50 patients with palmoplantar pustulosis (PPP) were randomized to 8 weeks of daily treatment with either oral etretinate, 1 mg/kg b.w. or placebo. Good or moderate effect was obtained in 18 of 20 patients on etretinate compared to 6 of 21 patients on placebo (p < 0.001). Etretinate proved to be significantly superior to placebo with regard to influence on the individual symptoms and signs of pustulosis. All patients on etretinate experienced some side effects from the mucous membranes, but they were generally mild. Treatment was discontinued after 4 weeks in 3 patients for reasons unrelated to treatment, in 4 for lack of effect (all on placebo) and in 2 for side effects (both on etretinate). Etretinate is a good alternative to other systemic treatments of PPP.

During the period 1966–1968, 88 patients with a total of 95 basal cell carcinomas were treated with 5% 5-fluorouracil ointment. A follow-up study carried out from November 1977 to January 1978 revealed a total of 12 recurrences in 56 surviving patients with 56 basal cell carcinomas. The recurrence rate is thus 21.4%. It is concluded that there is hardly any indication for using 5-fluorouracil in local treatment of nodular basal cell carcinoma.

Thirty-three patients with chronic discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE) who had received dapsone for 1–27 months were reviewed. The dapsone treatment gave excellent results in 8 patients (24%), some effect in 8 patients (24%), while no response was seen in 17 patients (52%). Of the patients who had earlier been treated with hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), 76% responded excellently to the treatment. Of 6 patients who received a combined dapsone and HCQ therapy, 2 responded well. Six patients (18%) terminated the dapsone treatment because of side effects, none of which were serious. It is concluded that dapsone might be an alternative or a supplement to HCQ in the treatment of DLE, when the latter causes adverse reactions or fails to be effective. However, we find that HCQ remains the drug of choice when systemic treatment is needed.

On the basis of own investigations and a survey of the literature, it is shown that the recurrence rate following various types of treatment used for basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is somewhat higher than generally assumed. Irrespective of the method used, the results obtained after treatment of recurrent BCCs are less favorable. Consequently, it is strongly recommended that patients be closely controlled for a period of years following treatment and that only specially trained doctors carry out the treatment. The possibility of centralizing treatment of BCC of the skin to dermatological units is put forward.