The Role of Oral Contraceptive Pills in Hidradenitis Suppurativa: A Cohort Study.

There is a need to establish the role of antiandrogens as an alternative or concomitant therapy for hidradenitis suppurativa (HS). Thus, the objectives of this study are (1) to assess the effectiveness of oral contraceptive pills (OCPs) at week 12 in HS women, and (2) to describe the clinical profile of patients receiving oral contraceptive pills (OCPs). A prospective observational study was designed. This study included 100 participants, 50 women with HS who started OCPs for the first time at our HS Clinic and 50 participants without OCP treatment. The main outcome of interest was the percentage of reduction in total abscess and inflammatory nodule (AN) count at week 12. Thirty-three women received combined OCPs and 17 non-combined OCP. HS patients with OCPs treatment were younger (31.7 vs. 40.9 years, p < 0.001), thinner (28.62 vs. 33.35 kg/m2), and have a higher number of areas affected (2.32 vs. 1.38, p = 0.02) than those without OCPs. After 12-weeks of treatment, it was observed that the percentage of AN reduction was higher in HS women receiving OCP than in patients without OCP (53.9% vs. 38.42%, p = 0.049). It was observed that OCP prescription (ß = 3.79, p = 0.034) and concomitant therapy (ß = 3.91, p = 0.037) were independently associated with a higher % AN when controlling for disease duration, concomitant therapy, and treatment with/without OCP (R2 = 0.67). The factors potentially associated with the percentage AN reduction at week 12 in HS women treated with OCPs were disease duration (ß = -1.327, p = 0.052), concomitant therapy (ß = 11.04, p = 0.079), and HS worsening with the menstrual cycle (ß = 10.55, p = 0.087). In conclusion, OCPs might be effective for improving AN count in women with HS. Women whose HS worsens in relation to the menstrual cycle and have a shorter disease may benefit more from the therapeutic effect of OCPs.

Psoriasis comprehensive care: an evaluation of a web site.

Psoriasis is a disease that affects many facets of life. Psoriasis patients have needs that cannot be addressed within the traditional consultation structure. Although the Internet provides a number of health resources, the quality of the information is variable, and many sites are not editorially independent. After reviewing the contents available on the Internet related to psoriasis, the staff of the psoriasis unit at San Cecilio University Hospital (Granada, Spain) developed a Web site to meet the needs of psoriasis patients. A group of 241 patients who attended a follow-up visit to our psoriasis unit evaluated the Web site and provided feedback through an online survey. The result of the Web development process was the creation of "Psoriasis365" (https://sites.google.com/site/psoriasis365/). Overall, the Web site achieved high scores, the most popular section being "research." These results suggest that the Web site can complement the healthcare of psoriasis patients and is potentially useful for research purposes.

Cutaneous Cryptococcus laurentii infection in an immunocompetent child.

Cryptococcus laurentii is an extremely rare human pathogen. We report a case of primary cutaneous cryptococcosis caused by Cryptococcus laurentii in an immunocompetent patient, an 8-year-old child with a solitary lesion on the forearm. It was impossible to determine the source of infection and no predisposing factors were found. Oral treatment with fluconazole was totally successful. A review of the literature showed only three cases of cutaneous infection by Cryptococcus laurentii. All of the cases occurred in immunocompromised patients. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of Cryptococcus laurentii in an immunocompetent host.