Dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria

Dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria is a clinically heterogenous disorder. We report two unrelated Indian patients with dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria, who had generalized and progressive reticulate hyper- and hypo-pigmentation of the skin. The oral mucosa and tongue also showed mottled pigmentation. Intriguingly, the palms and soles were also affected with a diffuse hyper-pigmentation interspersed with spotty de-pigmented macules. Dystrophic nail changes with pterygium formation were seen in one case. Histopathology revealed a variable degree of pigmentary incontinence. Although the precise aetiology of this disorder is not yet known, the clinicopathological findings implicate an inherent abnormality of melanosomes or melanin processing.     

Patch testing with Indian standard series

Hundred patients (61 males, 39 females) suspected to have allergic contact dermatitis were patch tested with Indian standard series (ISS). Forty four showed one or more positive reactions. The frequent sensitizers observed were nickel sulphate--12 (15%), potassium dichromate--11 (13.75%), cobalt chloride and colophony--7 (8.75%) each, fragrance mix and thiuram mix--6 (7.5%) each. The ISS differs from the European Standard Series by inclusion of propylene glycol, nitrofurazone, gentamicin, chlorocresol, PEG-400 and ethylenediamine chloride where assesquiterpene lactone mix and primin allergens are excluded.     

Socioeconomic inequality of cancer mortality in the United States: a spatial data mining approach

Background  

The objective of this study was to demonstrate the use of an association rule mining approach to discover associations between selected socioeconomic variables and the four most leading causes of cancer mortality in the United States. An association rule mining algorithm was applied to extract associations between the 1988–1992 cancer mortality rates for colorectal, lung, breast, and prostate cancers defined at the Health Service Area level and selected socioeconomic variables from the 1990 United States census. Geographic information system technology was used to integrate these data which were defined at different spatial resolutions, and to visualize and analyze the results from the association rule mining process.     

Gastric teratoma in children

Gastric teratoma (GT) comprises less than 1% of all teratomas in children. Though GT in the presence of immature neuroepethelial elements is regarded as malignant, the prognosis is excellent after complete excision of the tumor. Because of its rarity the world literature lacks a large study. Clinical experience with ten cases of GT is presented and discussed. Only one patient was female; the mean age at presentation was 3.2 months. Two cases were immature grade III GT; one of these had infiltrated the left lobe of the liver and the transverse colon while the other had metastasized to the regional lymph nodes and omentum. All the patients underwent complete excision. There were no deaths, and after a mean follow-up period of 4.2 years, all the patients had no recurrence and were healthy. Both the mature and immature types of GT have an excellent prognosis after complete excision of the tumor. Even when the immature type infiltrates surrounding structures, complete excision offers recurrence-free survival without requiring chemo- or radiotherapy. Accepted: 8 November 1999     

High-dose chemotherapy in poor-risk germ-cell tumors

Testicular cancer is a highly curable cancer. However, 30% of patients are refractory to standard therapy and will need additional therapy. This article focuses on the use of high-dose chemotherapy in germ-cell tumors. High-dose chemotherapy use is discussed both in the refractory setting and as either first-salvage or first-line therapy. Various criteria for risk assessment are also discussed.     

Childhood Lichen Planus (LP)

In adults, lichen planus (LP) is relatively more common than in children. Among 222 cases of LP, there were 25 (11.2%) children in our study. The majority of the cases were females in the age group of 8–14; the youngest child was 3 years old. Papular and linear types of LP were common in children. There was no familial history of LP in any of the cases. The patients with classic LP lesions responded well to dapsone therapy. This study supports the suggestion of Ramsay and Hurley that childhood LP is more common in the tropics.