Prescribing Patterns in the Treatment of Topical Steroid Damaged Face Patients: A Cross-Sectional, Survey-Based Observational Study among Practicing Dermatologists in an Eastern State of India.

Introduction: Topical steroid damaged face (TSDF) is a common occurrence in the current scenario, where darker - skinned people believe having lighter-colored skin improves their prospects in all aspects of life. This has led to the abuse of topical corticosteroids with unrealistic expectations driven by ignorance of the adverse effects, particularly in the Indian population. As TSDF is virtually an epidemic in India and there is no treatment protocol for dermatologists, we conducted this study to find out what dermatologists prescribe and, in turn, serve as a foundation to develop guidelines in the future. Materials and Methods: Forty dermatologists from Odisha, India, were selected to complete the questionnaire, containing 18 questions about diagnosis, treatment and necessary referral for ocular complications. Results: All participants were frequently diagnosing and treating TSDF. A total of 92.5% of the participants preferred initiating systemic therapy with isotretinoin or doxycycline as the drug of choice. Clindamycin and tacrolimus were preferred by 55% and 50% of participants, respectively, as the topical drug of choice. A total of 62.5% of the participants advised physical sunscreens and mild cleansers to be used with water at room temperature to wash their face. To reduce facial erythema, brimonidine was advised by 45% of participants. Conclusion: Standardized guidelines for managing TSDF are the need of the hour.

Treating Vitiligo at the Angle of Lips: A Narrative Review.

Vitiligo is a common autoimmune depigmentary disorder seen among Indian patients. It has a significant impact on the self-esteem of the patient. Specific sites including acral areas, joints, and lips are usually resistant to medical therapy and thus transfer of melanocytes is mandatory for the treatment. Vitiligo at the angle of lips is distinct from the vitiligo on other sites, with respect to response to therapy, lack of hair follicles, and high mobility of the area. Our aim was to review the various therapeutic modalities available for the treatment of vitiligo at this site. In our narrative review, we searched databases including PubMed, Google Scholar, and EBSCO with a full strategic search with keywords "Vitiligo," "leucoderma," "mucosal vitiligo," "lips," "labial," "angle of lips," "Minipunch grafting," "Suction Blister epidermal Grafting," "SBEG," "Micropigmentation," "tattooing," and "Excision" from 2005 to 2021. The relevant articles were extracted and included in the review. Various modalities including suction blister grafting, miniature punch grafting, split-thickness grafting, and micropigmentation have been reviewed with their advantages and disadvantages. Various potential modalities of therapy have also been proposed in the review.

Recommendations for COVID Vaccination for Dermatological Patients on Immunosuppressive/Immunomodulatory Therapy (IADVL Academy).

Significant proportion of patients with dermatological disorders are on immunosuppressive or immunomodulatory therapy predisposing them to risk of acquisition of COVID-19 infection. However, the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccination among these patients is a matter of concern due to lack of adequate evidence for their protective effect owing to the drug induced immunosuppressed state. Hence, we from the IADVL academy have framed the recommendations to be followed for COVID-19 vaccination among dermatological patients on immunosuppressive therapy based on available related literature.

Clinicomycological Study of Dermatophytosis in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Eastern India: A Cross-sectional Study.

INTRODUCTION: Dermatophytosis is a fungal infection of the skin, hair, and nails. In the past several years, it has emerged as a general public health problem in our country. Studies from different regions reveal varying patterns of etiological distribution of the disease. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence of different fungal species associated with dermatophytosis and to find out any possible association of the type of fungus with different clinical parameters of the disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study among 311 clinically diagnosed dermatophytosis cases from a tertiary care center in eastern India. Potassium hydroxide (KOH) mount and fungal culture were done from samples of skin, hair, and nails, and various clinical parameters were analyzed. RESULTS: There was a male preponderance among cases and maximum patients belonged to third decade of life. Most common presentation was tinea corporis et cruris (39.5%). Family history was positive in 48.8% of cases. Trichophyton mentagrophytes was the most common fungal species (79.91%) grown in culture followed by Trichophyton rubrum (13.53%). Majority of patients had a mild body surface area involvement. We did not find statistically significant association of any clinical parameters with type of organism isolated. CONCLUSION: Trichophyton mentagrophytes was the most common isolated fungal species. This is in contrast to several studies where T.rubrum was the frequently found organism. There was no significant association of any clinical parameters like body surface area, number of sites, or duration of diseasewith fungal species isolated in culture.

Association of Skin Tag with Metabolic Syndrome and its Components: A Case-control Study from Eastern India.

BACKGROUND: Skin tags are benign polyps, usually found in the natural folds of the skin. Some studies have found an association of skin tags with obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and atherogenic lipid profile. Metabolic syndrome refers to co-occurrence of these cardiovascular risk factors such as insulin resistance, obesity, dyslipidemia, and hypertension. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To find out any possible association of skin tags with metabolic syndrome and its components. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A case-control study was conducted including 140 participants. Seventy patients with skin tags were considered cases, and 70 age- and sex-matched patients without skin tags were considered as controls. Various anthropometric and biochemical parameters were compared and analyzed between the two groups. RESULTS: Univariate analysis revealed significantly higher waist circumference, high triglyceride, and low high-density lipoproteins (HDLs) in cases compared to controls. The prevalence of diabetes, hypertension, and metabolic syndrome was significantly higher in patients with skin tags, and risk of developing metabolic syndrome was 11.13 times higher in cases compared to controls (P < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed high waist circumference and low serum HDL had significant association with skin tags. CONCLUSION: Risk of development of metabolic syndrome is significantly higher in patients with skin tags. Among the various components of metabolic syndrome, only high waist circumference and low serum HDLs are significantly associated with skin tags.