Mixed diquat/paraquat-induced burns.

BACKGROUND: Ducatalon is a bipyridylium herbicide containing a mixture of diquat and paraquat, and is used in agriculture. Adverse reactions due to contact of this compound with the skin have rarely been described. CASE REPORTS: Two men were seen for severe pain due to extensive chemical burns in the perineal and scrotal regions, caused by leaking of Ducatalon from defective equipment used for spraying the herbicide. The lesions responded well to treatment with topical silver sulfadiazine, combined with systemic antibiotics. The damaged skin healed without scarring within a few days. The lesions have not recurred after the faulty spraying apparatus was replaced. CONCLUSION: Direct contact of the skin with Ducatalon may lead to severe chemical burns. Proper precautions should be taken by the personnel handling this compound, with particular attention to the integrity of the equipment used for spraying the herbicide.

Treatment of epidermal cysts with Solcoderm (a copper ion and acid solution).

The treatment of epidermal cysts has often posed a problem for dermatologists. Although surgical excision has been adopted as the method of choice for the removal of these lesions, complications of surgery and recurrences have warranted the search for alternate therapeutic modalities. Use of a recently introduced compound, Solcoderm, is reported in the treatment of 116 epidermal cysts in 85 patients over a 2-year period. The satisfactory cosmetic results observed, low incidence of recurrence, low cost and ease of administration, make this drug a viable alternative in the management of epidermal cysts, particularly in those cases where surgery should be avoided.

Case report: severe pyoderma associated with familial Mediterranean fever--favorable response to colchicine in three patients.

Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is an autosomal recessive disorder that occurs most frequently among Sephardic Jews and Armenians. It is characterized by recurrent episodes of fever, peritonitis, pleuritis, and arthritis. Skin lesions are seen in some patients. Diagnosis of FMF usually is made on clinical grounds only, typically when recurrent attacks of abdominal pain, fever, and arthritis are observed in a patient with an appropriate ethnic background and family history. To date, there are no specific diagnostic laboratory tests for FMF. Three patients with severe recurrent Pyoderma are covered in this report. In all three cases, the cutaneous lesions were associated with clinical manifestations of FMF and responded to colchicine therapy favorably. The importance of such an association and its therapeutic consequences are emphasized.

Immunofluorescent localization of cytokeratin intermediate filaments as a means of defining the presence of recurrent basal cell carcinoma.

Intermediate filament subunits are reliable markers of cytogenetic origin for both normal and neoplastic cells. Immunohistochemical localization of cytokeratin filaments offers a sensitive and specific means of identifying basal or reserve cells when studying histologic sections of skin biopsy specimens. We have applied this technique on eighteen cases in which unequivocal diagnosis or recurrent basal cell carcinoma could not be rendered by conventional histologic techniques. In three of the cases studied, microscopic islands of basal cell carcinoma could be demonstrated by positive staining with cytokeratin antibodies. In the remaining fifteen cases, the possibility of recurrent basal cell carcinoma could be conclusively eliminated on the basis of negative staining with this antibody. Immunolabeling with tissue specific cytokeratin antibodies by indirect immunofluorescent examination may thus constitute a reliable and relatively simple technique that may serve to establish a definitive diagnosis in equivocal cases of suspected recurrent basal cell carcinoma.

Paget's disease of the breast with underlying carcinoma arising in systemic scleroderma.

A case is presented of Paget's disease of the breast with underlying infiltrating carcinoma arising in a 35-year-old woman with systemic scleroderma. The tumor arose in an area of the skin affected by the systemic scleroderma 4 years after the onset of her systemic disease. The possibility of a causal relationship between these two processes is discussed and a brief review of the literature is presented.

Extraskeletal Ewing's sarcoma of the scalp.

A 15-year-old boy had an extraskeletal Ewing's sarcoma arising in the soft tissues of the scalp. The tumor was rapidly growing, subcutaneous mass unattached to the underlying bony structures. Histologic examination revealed a proliferation of primitive-appearing, round to oval cells adopting a lobular configuration. Immunohistochemical studies confirmed the undifferentiated mesenchymal nature of the neoplasm.

Sarcoidosis versus foreign-body granulomas.

A 42-year-old man developed a papulonodular exanthema 10 years following an injury from a shell explosion. The differential diagnosis between sarcoid-like, foreign-body granulomas and Boeck's sarcoid was inconclusive by histology, but x-ray spectroanalytic examination revealed silicon particles within the epitheloid cell granulomas.

Angioimmunoblastic lymphadenopathy following Kaposi's sarcoma.

The close relationship of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) with other lymphoproliferative disorders is a poorly understood, but well documented, phenomenon. A case is presented of a 68-year-old woman with the classical form of cutaneous KS in whom disappearance of the lesions after treatment was shortly followed by the development of angioimmunoblastic lymphadenopathy, pursuing a fulminant course to death. Postmortem examination revealed diffuse involvement of the marrow, spleen, liver, and lymph nodes by the immunoblastic proliferation. The close association of these two conditions may represent more than a chance occurrence. The appearance of a constellation of nonspecific symptoms suggestive of a lymphoproliferative disorder in debilitated patients with KS should alert the physician to the possibility of the development of this rare complication.

Verrucous pseudonevoid melanoma.

A case of an unusual variant of malignant melanoma resembling a papillomatous dermal nevus is presented here. The lesion was initially diagnosed as a Spitz nevus, and recurred locally five months after excision. The features which distinguish this lesion from the more common types of benign dermal nevi include the architectural atypia of the melanocytes, with a tendency for continuous proliferation of single cells along the dermoepidermal junction, as well as the presence of cytologic atypia with large hyperchromatic nuclei and mitoses. Despite its seemingly innocent appearance, distinction of this low-grade variant of melanoma from its benign counterparts is of importance in order to avert the possibility of recurrence and potential metastases.

Skin tags: a cutaneous marker for diabetes mellitus.

Two hundred and sixteen non hospitalized patients with skin tags (ST) were studied for the presence of diabetes mellitus (DM) and obesity. Overt DM was found in 57 (26.3%) patients and impaired glucose tolerance test was found in 17 (7.9%) patients. Sixteen new cases of DM were found among this group. All the diabetic patients in the study population had non-insulin dependent DM. Sixty-two (28.7%) of the patients were obese. No correlation was found between the localization, size, colour and number of the ST and the presence of DM. Our study indicates that ST are not associated with increased incidence of obesity compared to the general population. On the other hand, ST are associated with impaired carbohydrate metabolism, and may serve as means for identifying patients at increasing risk of having DM.

Induction of cutaneous plasma cell tumor as a complication of adjuvant immunotherapy with methanol extraction residue of bacillus Calmette-Guérin.

Methanol extraction residue (MER), a cell wall fraction of bacillus Calmette-Guérin, has been reported to exhibit immunomodulating properties which permit its successful use as an adjuvant of immunotherapy in cancer patients. Its beneficial immunostimulatory effects are generally thought to be due to nonspecific stimulation of cell-mediated immunity. Little attention has been focused on its humoral stimulating properties. A case is presented of a patient undergoing treatment with adjuvant immunotherapy with MER for malignant lymphoma who developed a cutaneous plasma cell tumor at the injection site of the drug. This complication may represent the result of enhanced humoral immunity induced by the MER treatment. The development of a cutaneous plasma cell tumor must be added to the list of known MER toxicities, and may constitute an indication for the discontinuation of treatment with this agent.

Effects of Solcoderm.

The effects of treatment and depths of penetration of a 5-fluorouracil and salicylic acid preparation (Solcoderm) were studied in 24 patients treated for basal cell carcinoma with this compound. Two thirds of the patients in our study showed islands of residual tumor in the dermis following treatment, whereas total disappearance of the tumor was observed in one third. The depth of the fibrotic changes induced by the drug varied from 0.34 to 0.40 cm for the morphea type of basal cell carcinoma and from 0.52 to 0.88 cm for the conventional types. It is recommended that treatment with this compound be reserved only for superficial basal cell carcinomas and that it be avoided altogether in basal cell carcinomas of the morphea type.

Prayer nodules in Moslem men.

Seven cases of Israeli Moslem men with hyperkeratotic nodular callosities of the legs and forehead are reported. These patients were randomly encountered over a two-year period in our dermatology clinic. The nodules were attributed to repeated trauma to the legs and forehead sustained during Moslem prayer. This article familiarizes the clinician with the morphologic characteristics of these lesions, which may occur in some Moslem men.