Teigne Tondante and Mahon Brothers: Two Laymen "Physicians" of Hôpital Saint-Louis, Paris.

In the early and mid-nineteenth century Europe, ringworm of the scalp was a vexing problem. It affected children in such numbers that the famous Hôpital Saint-Louis of Paris had a separate Tinea School. Before advent of radiation method of epilation, painful method of peeling was the mainstay of management. A family bearing title Mahon with no conventional medical training and qualification developed a secret method of epilation which was far superior to the existing method of treatment. Two brothers of this family, whose identity is obscure in the history of dermatology, were given the charge of treatment of such cases in various hospitals of France. Though they were not physician per se, their observations surprise us even today. Mahon the junior wrote a book on ringworm which is the first ever monograph on the subject. They also described favus of the nail and named ringworm of the scalp.

On the History of Classification in Dermatology.

Since the early days of cutaneous medicine, naming of the entities had remained a confusing subject. Earlier texts of all ancient civilisations are almost similar in this topic The Biblical controversy regarding the actual translational meaning of the original Hebrew term Zara 'at has become a centre of controversy amongst many research scholars of the medical history. Similar debate exists about the Ayurvedic term Kustha---- whether it meant leprosy or stood for a number of skin affliction is a matter of controversy. A scientific and rational classification system was, therefore needed. The process started with Galen and traversed a long path and ultimately with the eight orders classification system proposed by Robert Willan in the early part of the nineteenth century resolved the issue. This whole journey was eventful….almost all the great doyens of dermatology directly or indirectly contributed to this process. This overview will focus on the main such events of the medical history in nutshell.

Skin in health and diseases in rgveda samhita: an overview.

Rgveda is the oldest religious book of the Aryans. It picturises the early lives of the Aryans. We get mention of various diseases in this Veda. Skin - both in health and diseases had caught attention of the Vedic sages. Skin was not merely an organ of attraction and look but its colour was important socially. Mentions of various diseases like leprosy, guinea worm, jaundice etc., are interesting. Mention of different disorders of the nails and hair are also there, though in a very primitive and mystic form. Management strategy was consisted of herbs, amulates, chanting of mantras, touching the body, uses of water and sunrays etc. This may be presumed that this Veda founded the base for the Ayurveda of the later period.

Unilateral Nevus of Ota with Bilateral Nevus of Ito and Palatal Lesion: A Case Report with a Proposed Clinical Modification of Tanino's Classification.

Nevus of Ota and nevus of Ito are rare dermal melanocytoses. Nevus of Ota may be very rarely associated with the nevus of Ito and other extra cutaneous features. Both nevi are similar in all respect apart from the area of distribution. Bilateral distribution of nevus of Ito is seldom reported in the literature. A 24-year-old male patient reported with nevus of Ota of the right side of his face since his infancy and nevus of Ito on both shoulder regions since early childhood. He had bluish lesions on the right side of his hard palate. Systemic examination was normal. Relevant laboratory investigations were non contributory. The histopathological examination of the skin from the affected areas showed the presence of elongated dendritic dermal melanocytes. The present case is the first report of an association of bilateral nevus of Ito with nevus of Ota and palatal lesions. Tanino classified Nevus of Ota into four groups. As both the nevi are similar in all respect except the area of distribution, a minor modification of the existing Tanino's classification to incorporate the nevus of Ito into the classification for the Ota's nevus may be appropriate.

A study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of hydrocortisone aceponate 0.127% lipophilic cream in steroid responsive dermatoses in Indian patients.

BACKGROUND: Topical corticosteroids (CSs) are the mainstay of therapy in various steroid responsive dermatoses. Newer CSs are more efficacious and safer than the older ones. There is no published data on the efficacy and safety of a new steroid hydrocortisone aceponate in the Indian population. AIM: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of hydrocortisone aceponate (0.127%) lipophilic cream in the treatment of steroid responsive dermatoses in Indian patients. METHODS: Four hundred and fifteen patients with clinically diagnosed steroid responsive dermatoses enrolled in this study. They were advised to apply hydrocortisone aceponate (0.127%) lipophilic cream as a thin film to all the affected areas twice daily. Cleansing was done prior to the application with either soap-free cleanser or soap (that would not affect the study result). Use of oral antihistamines and/or antibiotics was permissible. However, other oral/topical steroid use was not permitted during the study. Patients were evaluated at day 0 and at day 21. Data were recorded regarding clinical improvement and side-effects, if any. They were then analyzed to determine the efficacy and safety of the cream. RESULTS: Physician's global evaluation of therapy showed that lesions were cleared in 82 (22.10%), excellent result in 200 (53.91%), good result in 72 (19.41%), fair response in 15 (4.04%) and no change in 2 (0.54%) patients. There was no history of exacerbation in any patient. CONCLUSION: The study showed that hydrocortisone aceponate (0.127%) lipophilic cream is an effective therapeutic agent with a very good safety profile in various steroid responsive dermatoses in the Indian patient population.

Linear scleroderma following Blaschko's lines.

Blaschko's lines form a pattern, which many diseases are found to follow, but linear scleroderma following Blaschko's lines is a controversial entity rarely reported in the literature. A 24-year-old man presented with multiple linear, atrophic, hyperpigmented lesions punctuated by areas of depigmentations on the left half of the trunk distributed on the anterior, lateral and posterior aspects. The lesions were distributed in a typical S-shaped line. Antinuclear antibody and antihistone antibody tests were negative. Histopathological examination of the skin from the affected area showed features suggestive of scleroderma. Here, we present a case of linear scleroderma following Blaschko's lines in a male patient--an entity reported only three times so far.

Simultaneous occurrence of disseminated superficial, linear and hypertrophic verrucous forms of porokeratosis in a child.

Porokeratosis is a genodermatosis characterized by abnormal epidermal keratinization with the histological feature of cornoid lamella. There are many clinical variants, but two or more of these variants rarely occur in a single patient. This variation in clinical presentation may be due to the different phenotypic expression of a common genetic abnormality or may be the consequence of abnormalities in closely linked genetic loci or genes. Here we report about a child who showed simultaneous occurrence of disseminated, linear and hypertrophic verrucous lesions of porokeratosis. He also had genital lesions, reported uncommonly in the medical literature.