Implicaciones bioéticas y médico-legales del uso de la fotografía en dermatología

Photographs are necessary in the clinical practice of dermatology, but there are ethical implications to consider. Moreover, dermatologists must be aware of and comply with certain legal requirements affecting the use of photographs. The main ethical principles are respect for patient autonomy and the physician's obligation to do no harm. The law differentiates between 2 bases for protection: one concerns the photographed person's rights over the image and the other protects personal data. Recent legislation places restrictions on taking photographs and exhibiting them. Photographs taken to be stored with a medical history have not been called into question, but the physician is recommended to inform the patient that they exist. When a photograph is exhibited for the purpose of teaching or illustrating concepts, it is necessary to determine whether or not the patient can be identified. If the answer is yes, the patient must give explicit permission. Caution should be exercised when publishing medical photographs on social media.     

Local injection of botulinum toxin A: An alternative therapy for axillary osmidrosis

The objective of this study was to investigate the efficacy of local injection of botulinum toxin A for treating axillary osmidrosis. One hundred and fifty patients with axillary osmidrosis were randomly divided to receive botulinum toxin A injection treatment (50 U of botulinum toxin A was injected intracutaneously into 6–20 different sites within each axilla, n = 74) or surgical excision of the apocrine glands (n = 76). The patients were followed up for 1–3 months to analyze the therapeutic effect and complications of the two methods. The curative effect in patients with mild and moderate axillary osmidrosis was not significantly different between the botulinum toxin A injection group and operation group. However, for patients with severe axillary osmidrosis, surgery treatment seemed to be superior to botulinum toxin A treatment (P = 0.005). There was also no significant difference in the modified Dermatology Life Quality Index between the two treatments. Two cases showed complications related to hemorrhage and incision infection in the operation group. In conclusion, local injection of botulinum toxin A is a safe, fast and effective treatment for mild and moderate axillary osmidrosis, but the long‐term effect remains to be further investigated.     

Sample size: how many participants do I need in my research?

The importance of estimating sample sizes is rarely understood by researchers, when planning a study. This paper aims to highlight the centrality of sample size estimations in health research. Examples that help in understanding the basic concepts involved in their calculation are presented. The scenarios covered are based more on the epidemiological reasoning and less on mathematical formulae. Proper calculation of the number of participants in a study diminishes the likelihood of errors, which are often associated with adverse consequences in terms of economic, ethical and health aspects.