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Background: Telemedicine is being increasingly used to provide healthcare to patients, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Aims: The study aimed to study patient perception and satisfaction with a smartphone-based hybrid teledermatology service initiated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: This was a cross-sectional telephonic survey including patients ?18 years of age who had received a teledermatology consultation. After noting the demographic, clinical and teleconsultation details, patients were administered the Telemedicine Satisfaction Questionnaire and an additional 6-item questionnaire. Patients were also asked to give qualitative feedback and suggestions for improvement using a semi-structured interview guide. Results: We interviewed 201 subjects. The most common diagnoses were pemphigus (27, 13.4%), superficial fungal infections (24, 11.8%), psoriasis (22, 10.9%) and dermatitis (21, 10.4%). The overall mean Telemedicine Satisfaction Questionnaire score was 4.20± 0.71. One hundred seventy-one (85.1%) patients responded that they would use teledermatology services again, while 168 (83.6%) reported satisfaction with the quality of services. A majority of the patients were largely satisfied with the various components involved, though some concerns were raised about the care perceived as not at par with physical consultations, difficulty in procuring medicines, lack of confidence in photographic diagnoses and the lack of a personal touch. Patients with urticaria (P=0.020), those who were advised a change in treatment (P=0.029) and those with improvement in their skin disease (P=0.026) were more likely to be satisfied. Limitations: Our study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic when patient acceptability was likely to be higher. Only follow-up patients were included in the study. Conclusion: Patient satisfaction levels were generally high with teledermatology. Addressing lacunae that negatively impact patient perception and satisfaction will help in greater acceptance of teledermatology services.
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Background: Vitiligo places a significant psycho-social burden on caregivers and family members. Aims: The aim of the study was to develop and preliminarily validate a scale to measure the psychosocial impact of vitiligo on adult family members. Methods: Themes that emerged from qualitative interviews and a focus group discussion with family members were used to generate items for a preliminary scale, followed by pre-testing and scale development. The new scale was then tested with two comparator scales and a global question. Results: A preliminary scale with 32 items was pilot tested on 30 participants. Following this, the scale was condensed to 16 items in 12 domains that were administered to 159 participants. Scale scores ranged from 0 to 48 with a mean of 19.75 ± 12.41. The scale had excellent internal consistency with Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.92 (0.70–0.95) and also showed good test-retest reliability at two weeks (r = 0.946). The scale showed criterion, convergent and known group validity. Limitations: It was conducted in a large teaching hospital which may have resulted in selection of patients with persistent or progressive disease and more worried family members. Vitiligo is highly stigmatized in our country and the performance of the scale may need to be evaluated in other communities and cultures as well where stigma is less oppressive. Conclusion: Family Vitiligo Impact Scale appears to be an easy-to-complete, reliable and valid instrument to measure the psychosocial impact of vitiligo in family members of patients. It may be useful as an outcome measure in both clinical and research settin
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Background: Facial papules are a feature of several clinical conditions and may present both diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. Aim: To describe a grouped papular eruption on the nose and adjoining cheeks that has not been well characterized previously. Materials and Methods: A series of consecutive patients with a papular eruption predominantly involving nose and cheeks were evaluated, treated and followed up prospectively at tertiary care centers. Demographic details, clinical features, histopathology and response to treatment were recorded. Results: There were five men and six women (mean age 29.9 ± 6.9 years) who had disease for a mean duration of 17.3 ± 11.1 months. All patients presented with a predominantly asymptomatic eruption of monomorphic, pseudovesicular, grouped, skin colored to slightly erythematous papules prominently involving the tip of nose, nasal alae, philtrum and the adjoining cheeks. A total of 15 biopsies from 11 patients were analyzed and the predominant finding was a dense, focal lymphoid infiltrate restricted to the upper dermis with basal cell damage and atrophy of the overlying epidermis. The eruption ran a chronic course from several months to years. Limitations: Direct immunofluorescence could not be performed except in one case. Immunohistochemical stains for CD4 and CD8 could not be done owing to nonavailability. Phototesting was undertaken in one patient only. Conclusion: Small grouped papules on the nose and adjoining skin with a lichenoid histopathology appear to represent a distinct clinicopathological entity. It may be related to actinic lichen nitidus/micropapular variant of polymorphous light eruption.
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What happens when a manuscript is submitted to the journal? Although the process is essentially similar in all biomedical journals, every editorial team does things slightly different. This article describes the workflow we currently follow at the IJDVL.
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Background: Pulsed corticosteroids have been used successfully for the management of pemphigus. However, prolonged use of glucocorticoids may be associated with adverse effects and some patients show a poor response to conventional therapy. Biologics have shown a promising role in such cases; however, there is limited data from the Indian subcontinent. Objective: The primary objective was to assess the effi cacy and adverse effects of rituximab in pemphigus. The secondary objective was to measure the cumulative doses of corticosteroids required for these patients. Methods: We undertook a retrospective review of records of 25 pemphigus patients (pemphigus vulgaris: 21, pemphigus foliaceus: 4) who had received rituximab infusion (rheumatoid arthritis protocol in 21 patients, modifi ed in 4). Oral prednisolone was administered in dosages up to 0.5 mg/kg of body weight and tapered over the next 3–4 months according to the disease activity. However, other immunosuppressive agents such as cyclophosphamide and azathioprine were continued for one year after clinical remission was achieved. Results: Complete remission was observed in 22 (88%) patients. The mean time to disease control and complete remission was 1.10 and 4.36 months, respectively. Four (16%) patients experienced relapse after a mean duration of 11.75 months. The mean total dose of oral steroids administered was equivalent to 3535.64 mg of prednisolone. Exacerbation of disease was noted in two patients after the fi rst dose of rituximab and infectious complications, pneumonia and cellulitis, developed in one patient each. Limitations: A small sample size, the retrospective nature of the study and unavailability of follow-up anti-desmoglein autoantibodies levels were limitations. Conclusion: Rituximab is an effective agent in the treatment of pemphigus. The use of rituximab enabled use of a lower initial dose of oral prednisolone in pemphigus and hence reduced its total cumulative dose. Severe side effects were rare.
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Romani L, Whitfeld MJ, Koroivueta J, Kama M, Wand H, Tikoduadua L, Tuicakau M, Koroi A, Andrews R, Kaldor JM, Steer AC. (Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales; Department of Dermatology, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney; Menzies School of Health Research, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, NT; and the Centre for International Child Health, University of Melbourne, Group A Streptococcal Research Group, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, and Department of General Medicine, Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Ministry of Women, Children, and Poverty Alleviation and the Ministry of Health, Suva, Fiji.) Mass drug administration for scabies control in a population with endemic disease. N Engl J Med 2015;373: 2305–13.