Simultaneous Occurrence of two Squamous Cell Carcinomas within a Nevus Sebaceous of Jadassohn in an 11-Year-Old Girl

Abstract:   The development of a squamous cell carcinoma within a nevus sebaceous of Jadassohn is very rare. We report here for the first time, the simultaneous occurrence of two squamous cell carcinomas within a single nevus sebaceous of Jadassohn.     

A Population-based Study of Toenail Onychomycosis in Israeli Children

Abstract:   Onychomycosis is widespread in the adult population, but considered to be rare in children. A number of studies in recent years show a rise in the prevalence of toenail onychomycosis in children. Of these, only a few were population-based. Here, we present a comprehensive cross-sectional population-based survey of toenail onychomycosis in primary school children in Israel. The survey included 1148 children, 598 boys, and 550 girls aged 5 to 14 from primary schools in the Jerusalem vicinity. Each child underwent a physical examination and completed a personal questionnaire, which provided background information of predisposing factors. The survey shows a prevalence of 0.87% of toenail onychomycosis. Although this figure is too small for statistical analysis, some important conclusions could be drawn: prevalence increased with age: boy/girl ratio was 2.2; the dominant etiologic agent was Trichophyton rubrum followed by Trichophyton mentagrophytes and Candida albicans . Infections were probably transferred from adults via the environment to children. Infected children came from different socio-economic backgrounds. This condition should be considered in the differential diagnosis of nail diseases in children.     

SEVENTY-TWO HOUR COMPARISON OF METHYLPREDNISOLONE SULEPTANATE AND METHYLPREDNISOLONE SODIUM SUCCINATE IN PATIENTS WITH ACUTE ASTHMA

SUMMARY The efficacy and safety of the methylprednisolone prodrugs methylprednisolone suleptanate and methylprednisolone sodium succinate were evaluated in a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, double-dummy parallel study of 88 patients hospitalised with acute asthma. Each study drug was administered as a bolus intravenous injection of 40mg methylprednisolone equivalents every 6 hours for 48 hours. Methylprednisolone 32mg was administered orally 6 hours after the last dose. Pulmonary function, medical events, and clinical laboratory values were assessed at predefined intervals before and during the 72-hour study. The primary response measure of pulmonary function was per cent predicted forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV₁) at 48 hours. Secondary response measures were peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) and FEV₁/forced vital capacity (FVC) ratio. Although both drugs demonstrated within-group mean changes from baseline (starting at 6 hours) that were statistically significant for each response, there were no statistically significant differences between the two groups. The mean percent predicted FEV₁ at 48 hours and mean per cent change from baseline were 64% and 13% (p<0.0001) for the methylprednisolone suleptanate group and 67% and 17% (p<0.0001) for the methylprednisolone sodium succinate group, respectively. The mean PEFR and FEV₁/FVC ratio at 48 hours were 5.77 l/s and 73% for the methylprednisolone suleptanate group and 5.78 l/s and 76% for the methylprednisolone sodium succinate group, respectively. There were no clinically or statistically significant between-group differences in any of the safety parameters. In this study, methylprednisolone suleptanate and methylprednisolone sodium succinate have been shown to be therapeutically equivalent in the treatment of patients hospitalized with acute asthma.     

人白细胞介素24mRNA在瘢痕疙瘩中的表达及意义

目的:从基因水平测量瘢痕疙瘩组织中白细胞介素24的表达水平,探讨白细胞介素24在瘢痕疙瘩发生、发展过程中的作用和意义。方法:实验于2005-10/2006-09在广东医学院整形外科研究所完成。①选取2004-06/2005-10广东医学院附属医院整形外科收治的患者,瘢痕疙瘩标本12例,正常瘢痕标本10例,行巨乳缩小、除皱术、植皮等患者正常皮肤标本12例,患者均知情同意且自愿捐献标本,实验经医学伦理委员会批准。标本取材部位为颜面、前胸、四肢等,切取后液氮保存。②低温条件下切取秤量组织,采用Trizol法提取总RNA。电泳鉴定总RNA完整性,并统一调整总RNA含量为10g/L,-70℃储存。RT-PCR二步法合成cDNA。③以正常皮肤、正常瘢痕为对照,以GAPDH作为扩增内参照基因,将正常皮肤、正常瘢痕和瘢痕疙瘩各类标本总RNA反转录的cDNA模板浓度调整相对一致进行扩增反应。以白细胞介素24mRNA与GAPDHmRNA的光密度积分值之比作为各类组织标本中白细胞介素24的相对含量,比较白细胞介素24mRNA在正常皮肤、正常瘢痕及瘢痕疙瘩组织中的表达情况。结果:①各类组织标本中总RNA抽提结果:正常皮肤、正常瘢痕和瘢痕疙瘩组织中抽提总RNA经甲醛变性凝胶电泳后显示较清晰的18s和28s条带,经紫外分光光度计测定A260/A280≈2.0。②各类组织标本中白细胞介素24mRNA的表达:白细胞介素24和GAPDH基因表达产物通过RT-PCR方法得到的特异性DNA片段长度分别为173bp和577bp。瘢痕疙瘩的白细胞介素24mRNA与GAPDHmRNA的吸光度比值明显低于正常皮肤、正常瘢痕(0.577±0.113,1.070±0.185,1.139±0.195;t=7.436×10-8～4.745×10-8,P均<0.01),正常皮肤与正常瘢痕白细胞介素24mRNA的相对表达量基本一致(t=0.405,P>0.05)。结论:瘢痕疙瘩的形成可能与白细胞介素24在组织中的表达降低有关。提示采用基因疗法提高早期瘢痕疙瘩中白细胞介素24的含量与活性,可能为瘢痕疙瘩的康复治疗提供有效途径。     

Development and validation of the Humanitarian Aid Difficulty Scale for Japanese healthcare workers

Few studies have investigated deployment‐related experiences of healthcare workers dispatched for medical humanitarian aid or attempted to assess their difficult living and working environments. This is the first study to develop and validate a scale to measure these kinds of difficulties, in 264 Japanese healthcare workers. The Humanitarian Aid Difficulty Scale was developed in three stages. First, an item pool was generated based on literature and expert reviews. The scale was then tested in a pilot study. Reliability and validity were identified through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and Cronbach's alpha. The scale consisted of 23 items across five factors based on exploratory factor analysis (cooperation, health status, infrastructure, culture and customs, and supplies and equipment). The total variance explained was 60.7%. Reliability of the five factors was acceptable and validity was supported by confirmatory factor analysis. Cronbach's alpha for the scale was 0.87. The scale may enable evaluation of the level of difficulty of the living and working environments of Japanese healthcare workers in medical humanitarian aid who are at a greater risk of distress.