Application of conventional and microbeam synchrotron radiation x-ray fluorescence and absorption for the characterization of human nails.

The synchrotron radiation based spectroscopies X-ray fluorescence and X-ray absorption fine structure are used to detect illness-related changes in the elemental distribution and bonding environment of metals in human nails. The effective atomic number of a collection of nails is determined using two methods, the X-ray transmittance and the scattering method, and is found equal to 7.5 +/- 0.5. X-ray fluorescence maps of the elemental distributions, recorded with a lateral resolution of 5 microm, reveal that S, Ca and Zn are distributed homogeneously while Fe tends to cluster. In the Fe-rich clusters, which have a diameter in the range 15-30 microm, the Fe concentration is 10 times higher than in the matrix. The Zn K edge X-ray Absorption Fine Structure spectra reveal that Zn, in the nails from healthy donors and patients suffering from lung diseases, is four-fold coordinated with N and S and the Zn-N and Zn-S distances are equal to 2.03 A and 2.25 A, respectively. Finally the signature of various bonds in the C-, O- and N- K near edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectra is discussed.

Treatment of guttate psoriasis with a new two-compound product containing calcipotriol and betamethasone dipropionate.

We report a case of guttate psoriasis in a 28-year-old woman who had been suffering from scalp psoriasis from the age of 14. After an upper respiratory infection she presented with the typical exanthema of guttate psoriasis. Despite initial treatment with antibiotics and emollients, the rash continued to spread. Two months after the flare of psoriasis we decided to treat the patient with calcipotriol and betamethasone dipropionate ointment applied once daily, using an intermittent treatment modality. The lesions disappeared and despite two small recurrences on the legs we managed to maintain clearance after a 2-year follow-up. Although the application of calcipotriol and betamethasone dipropionate ointment was cumbersome, due to the extent of the eruption, the result was highly effective and safe without any lesional/perilesional adverse reaction during application and with normal blood examinations.