Muscular force is reduced in neurofibromatosis type 1.

OBJECTIVES: To measure muscular force in neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) patients. METHODS: The maximal voluntary muscular force (F(max)) was measured in the first 21 volunteer patients without acute health problems at the routine annual examination in the Neurofibromatosis Outpatient Reference Center during October-November (2007). The NF1 individuals were 9 males and 12 females, aged from 7 to 60 years and physically sedentary. The healthy control group was 21 healthy subjects matched to NF1 group by age, sex and physical activity. A handgrip test instrument was used to measure maximal force. To allow comparisons between physically different patients, forearm circumference (cm) was measured with a tape and forearm cross sectional area was derived to express the force per unit of forearm area. Data were compared using a t Student test (P<0.05). RESULTS: The mean F(max) of NF1 male (260-/+136 N) and NF1 female (217-/+76 N) were lower than expected for their sex and age. Healthy men showed greater F(area) (9.8-/+3.2 N x cm(-2)) than NF1 men (5.7-/+2.6 N x cm(-2)) and healthy women (6.7-/+1.6 N x cm(-2)) showed greater F(area) than NF1 females (5.7-/+1.9 N x cm(-2)). CONCLUSION: Maximal voluntary muscle force was reduced in NF1 patients.

Influence of narrow-band UVB phototherapy on cutaneous microbiota of children with atopic dermatitis.

OBJECTIVE: In the present work, the effect of narrow-band ultraviolet B (UVB) phototherapy on a cutaneous microbial population was evaluated in patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) and compared with control patients (vitiligo). METHODS: Count, isolation and identification of cutaneous microbiota from anticubital fossa were performed in 10 controls and 10 AD patients, both submitted to similar levels (P > 0.05) of UVB phototherapy (4.3 +/- 0.9 and 4.3 +/- 0.8 accumulated joules, respectively). Additionally, Staphylococcus aureus isolates were screened for the production of exotoxins. RESULTS: The total and staphylococcal cutaneous microbial population levels were higher (P < 0.05) in AD patients than in the controls. All these population levels decreased (P < 0.05) for both AD and control patients after UVB phototherapy, which also decreased the SCORAD for AD patients. All patients with AD and 50% of controls were carriers of S. aureus, and harboured the bacteria simultaneously on skin and anterior nares. All of the S. aureus strains recovered from AD patient skin produced toxin and the B type was the most frequently detected (70%), followed by C (20%) and A (10%) toxins. Only 40% of the S. aureus isolates from control patients produced toxin. After UVB treatment, microbial population levels of AD patients were similar (P > 0.05) to the ones found in control patients before phototherapy, and toxin production ability of S. aureus isolates decreased drastically. CONCLUSION: The results of the present study show the beneficial effect of UVB phototherapy on AD and suggest that this may be attributable not only to reduction of skin surface bacteria but also to the suppression of superantigen production from S. aureus.

Single-blind and comparative clinical study of the efficacy and safety of benzoyl peroxide 4% gel (BID) and adapalene 0.1% Gel (QD) in the treatment of acne vulgaris for 11 weeks.

objectives: To compare the efficacy and tolerability of a gel containing benzoyl peroxide 4%, used twice daily, with a gel containing adapalene 0.1% used once daily, in the treatment of acne vulgaris for 11 weeks. methods: 178 patients bearing acne vulgaris, aged between 13 and 30 years, were studied in a comparative and single-blind clinical study. The 178 patients were divided into two groups: 89 patients treated with benzoyl peroxide 4% and 89 patients treated with adapalene 0.1%. The treatment duration was 11 weeks. The efficacy assessment was conducted through an accounting of both the inflammatory and non-inflammatory lesions in all visits. The safety assessment was conducted through reports regarding adverse reactions and local tolerance in all visits and an overall tolerance at the end of the study. conclusions: The results showed that both treatments were efficient in the reduction of acne lesions after 11 weeks treatment and were well tolerated, without any serious adverse event report. The benzoyl peroxide 4% was superior in the reduction of the number of inflammatory and non-inflammatory lesions at weeks 2 and 5, when compared to adapalene 0.1%.

Isolation Leishmania sp from aqueous humor of a patient with cutaneous disseminated leishmaniasis and bilateral iridocyclitis (preliminary report)

Os autores descrevem um caso raro de leishmaniose con lesoes cutaneas disseminadas, manifestacoes sistemicas e comprometimento ocular, sendo este caracterizado por iridociclite bilateral nao granulomatosa. A gravidade do quadro oftalmologico e a ausencia de resposta ao tratamento, a despeito da melhora das manifestacoes cutaneas e sistemicas, levaram a realizacao de puncao propedeutica da camada anterior ocular. A partir do humor aquoso isolou-se Leishmania sp. Os autores desconhecem na literatura qualquer outro caso onde tal achado tenha sido demonstrado