There has been a dramatic decrease in the incidence of favus with complete disappearance of T. schoenleinii. T. verrucosum as a causative agent of tinea capitis in this area has been reported for the first time in this study.
Introduction. Psoriasis is a relatively common chronic inflammatory disease. It clinically manifests as raised, well defined erythematous plaques with irregular borders and silvery scales. Psoriasis appears to be mediated by abnormal immune system functioning, including T lymphocyte and macrophage activation and release of various cytokins, such as interleukin 12 (IL-12) and IL-23. Recently a new biologic agent Ustekinumab has been used in the treatment of psoriasis. Our aim in this study was to assess the efficacy and tolerability of ustekinumab in moderate to severe psoriasis vulgaris and to observe and report any adverse reaction. Material and Methods. Thirty five psoriatic patients above the age of 18 years having moderate to severe psoriasis were included in this study. Ustekinumab is available in pre-filled syringe 45mg/0.5ml, 90mg/1.0ml for subcutaneous injection according to body weight at the intervals of 0, 4 weeks, and then every 12 weeks. It is given in hospital by a doctor or specialist nurse. The assessment of the patients’ condition and improvement was carried out after administering each dose using PASI score. Results. Thirty five patients were included in this study. Baseline PASI score of our patients ranged from 11.4 to 39.8 (mean: 21.1).There was a dramatic response to treatment with ustekinumab in which PASI decreased to 6.7 after the second dose, followed by subsequent responses that reached 2.6 after the 6th dose. After the second dose, 61% of the cases had marked improvement and 11% had clearance of their skin lesions. After the last, sixth dose there was a marked improvement in 65% of cases and the percentage of complete clearance increased to 24%. Ustekinumab had positive effect on psoriatic nail changes as well-there was a significant improvement in 50% of cases and complete clearance (cure) in 24% of cases. Conclusion: Ustekinumab is effective in the treatment of severe and resistant cases of psoriasis vulgaris. It is well tolerated by the patients. No reactions or serious side effects have been reported.
Cutaneous manifestations of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease may result from HIV infection itself, or from opportunistic disorders secondary to the declined immunocompetence due to the disease. A total of 220 HIV positive patients, treated in the Benghazi Center of Infectious Diseases and Immunology over a period of 14 years (January 2003 to November 2016), were included in a retrospective study. The patients' age ranged from 7 to 46 years. The study was conducted by reviewing the patients' records using the management information system (MIS). Statistical analysis of the data was carried out by the t-test and Chi square test. Among the studied patients, 119 (54.1%) were males and 101 (45.9%) were females, and most of them (78.6%) were 10 – 19 years of age. The predominant mode of transmission was parenteral transmission, in 95% of patients, and positive family history was observed in 12% of patients. Among the total number of visits to dermatologists, 93% of patients had a single disease. Of the total number of skin diseases diagnosed during the visits, parasitic infestations were seen in 92 patients (21.0%), eczematous and related disorders in 78 patients (17.8%), viral infections in 71 patients (16.2%), bacterial infections in 41 patients (9.3%), and fungal infections in 35 patients (7.9%). Dermatophyte infections were the most common fungal infections recorded in 19 patients (4.3%), followed by Candida infection in 11 patients (2.5%). Warts were found in 5.9% of viral infections, followed by herpes zoster (4.1%). HIV positive patients should be examined for skin disorders, because early diagnosis and management of such problems improves the quality of life in these patients.
Background: Vitiligo is a common disease with autoimmune etiology. The chronic nature of disease, long term treatment, lack of uniform effective therapy and unpredictable course of disease is usually very demoralizing for patients suffering from vitiligo. Aim of the study: To review the demographic data among Libyan vitiligo patients. Patients and methods: 150 patients above the age of 16 years attended vitiligo clinic in Al Jamhoria hospital; Benghazi-Libya during the period of one year were exposed to detailed disease history and thorough dermatological examination. Results: Our study showed that slightly higher proportion of vitiligo in females (61.3%) as compared to males (38.7%). The mean age for patients was 34year and mean duration was 10 years. Positive family history elicited in (26%) of patients and stress was the commonest aggravating factor which represent (84%). Clinically, vitiligo vulgaris represent the commonest morphological pattern(35%), nearly half of patients (48%) had the disease in both exposed and unexposed sites, 39% had the disease on exposed site and only 13% had the disease on unexposed sites. Two third of patients (65%) had severe lesions (more than 10). Majority of patients (89%) had no associated disease. About 10 % had either diabetes or hypothyroidism or both. Conclusion: This study showed that vitiligo constitute a major health problem, it has more female predominance, Stress is the most common etiological factor and exposed body sites are frequently involved.
Congenital melanocytic nevi (CMN) even small-sized as well as acquired melanocytic nevi (AMN) are of common cosmetic concerns and getting rid of them remain challenging. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of the ultra-pulsed CO2 laser for the treatment of melanocytic nevi. 15 male and female Libyan patients with 16 AMN and 7 CMN were treated with multiple sessions of ultra-pulsed CO2 laser at 1-month intervals. Clinical response at 6 months after final treatment was graded as poor (< 50%), moderate (50–75%), good (> 75%) and excellent where the skin of the lesion returned normal as the rest of the surrounding skin. All treated nevi showed good to excellent cosmetic outcomes after 2 or 4 treatment sessions. The post laser complication were minimal and transit except for one atrophic scar. No recurrence of pigmentation during the six months of follow-up period. Conclusion: Ultra-pulsed CO2 laser seems to be effective and associate with minimum adverse side effect in the treatment of small CMN and AMN.
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