Neurofibromatosis, which was first described in 1882 by Von Recklinghausen, is a
genetic disease characterized by a neuroectodermal abnormality and by clinical
manifestations of systemic and progressive involvement which mainly affect the skin,
nervous system, bones, eyes and possibly other organs. The disease may manifest in
several ways and it can vary from individual to individual. Given the wealth of
information about neurofibromatosis, we attempted to present this information in
different ways. In the first part of this work, we present a chronological history,
which describes the evolution of the disease since the early publications about the
disorder until the conclusion of this work, focusing on relevant aspects which can be
used by those wishing to investigate this disease. In the second part, we present an
update on the various aspects that constitute this disease.
Clouston syndrome is a rare genodermatosis that affects skin and annexes. It
is a form of ectodermal dysplasia characterized by generalized
hypotrichosis, palmoplantar hyperkeratosis and nail dystrophy. This paper
reports a 25-year follow-up of a patient with Clouston syndrome, from
childhood to adulthood, monitoring diagnosis and clinical course of the
disease.
BACKGROUNDThe incidence of cutaneous melanoma is increasing worldwide. Since it is an
aggressive neoplasm, it is difficult to treat in advanced stages; early diagnosis
is important to heal the patient. Melanocytic nevi are benign pigmented skin
lesions while atypical nevi are associated with the risk of developing melanoma
because they have a different histological pattern than common nevi. Thus, the
clinical diagnosis of pigmented lesions is of great importance to differentiate
benign, atypical and malignant lesions. Dermoscopy appeared as an auxiliary test
in vivo, playing an important role in the diagnosis of pigmented lesions, because
it allows the visualization of structures located below the stratum
corneum. It shows a new morphological dimension of these lesions to
the dermatologist and allows greater diagnostic accuracy. However, histopathology
is considered the gold standard for the diagnosis. OBJECTIVESTo establish the sensitivity and specificity of dermoscopy in the diagnosis of
pigmented lesions suspected of malignancy (atypical nevi), comparing both the
dermatoscopic with the histopathological diagnosis, at the Dermatology Service of
the outpatient clinic of Hospital de Base, São José do Rio Preto, SP.METHODSAnalysis of melanocytic nevi by dermoscopy and subsequent biopsy on suspicion of
atypia or if the patient so desires, for subsequent histopathological diagnosis.RESULTSSensitivity: 93%. Specificity: 42%. CONCLUSIONSDermoscopy is a highly sensitive method for the diagnosis of atypical melanocytic
nevi. Despite the low specificity with many false positive diagnoses, the method
is effective for scanning lesions with suspected features of malignancy.
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