Psychological and professional impact of COVID-19 lockdown on French dermatologists: Data from a large survey.

AIM: To evaluate the extent to which COVID-19-related lockdown affected dermatologists. METHODS: An anonymous online survey was proposed to all French dermatologists and dermatology residents to assess the impact of COVID-19 lockdown on their professional activity, their level of stress and their psychological state, as well as their coping strategies. RESULTS: Exactly 800 dermatologists completed the survey. The respondents noted changes in behaviour in their professional and personal environment. The number of cancelled or rescheduled appointments was very high, with a huge financial impact for private practitioners. Stigmatisation was also reported. Anxiety and a feeling of increased stress were very frequent. Increased substance use was also reported. CONCLUSION: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown was significant for French dermatologists, with risks to their own health, profound changes in their practice, and financial and psychological impact, but also the development of new consultation and evaluation strategies to improve their work-life balance.

Oxybutynin as a treatment for generalized hyperhidrosis: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Hyperhidrosis is a disorder that can impair quality of life. Localized treatments may be cumbersome and ineffective, and no systemic treatments have proven to be significantly beneficial. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effectiveness and tolerance of low-dose oxybutynin for hyperhidrosis. METHODS: We conducted a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. From June 2013 to January 2014, 62 patients with localized or generalized hyperhidrosis were enrolled. Oxybutynin was started at a dose of 2·5 mg per day and increased gradually to 7·5 mg per day. The primary outcome was defined as improvement of at least one point on the Hyperhidrosis Disease Severity Scale (HDSS). Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) and tolerance were also reported. RESULTS: Most patients (83%) in our study had generalized hyperhidrosis. Oxybutynin was superior to placebo in improving the HDSS: 60% of patients treated with oxybutynin, compared with 27% of patients treated with placebo, improved at least one point on the HDSS (P = 0·009). The mean improvement in quality of life measured by DLQI was significantly better in the oxybutynin arm (6·9) than in the placebo arm (2·3). The most frequent side-effect was dry mouth, which was observed in 43% of the patients in the oxybutynin arm, compared with 11% in the placebo arm. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment with low-dose oxybutynin is effective in reducing symptoms of hyperhidrosis in generalized or localized forms. Side-effects were frequent but minor and mainly involved dry mouth.

[Predictive factors for pain in technical dermatological procedures]. / Facteurs prédictifs de la douleur dans les gestes techniques dermatologiques.

BACKGROUND: Technical procedures in dermatology are painful. AIM: The aim of the study was to determine predictive factors for pain in such procedures. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This observational study evaluated pain by means of a numerical pain rating scale and a questionnaire about the circumstances of the pain and the use of analgesic methods. Data were analysed using Excel and SAS software. RESULTS: Five hundred and forty-six questionnaires were analysed. Among the patients, 45.4% had mild pain, 34.5% moderate pain and 20.1% severe pain. The least painful procedures were cryotherapy, surgical excision and biopsy, debridement and curettage. Procedures causing moderate to severe pain were treatments involving laser and lights as well as injections (hyaluronic acid, intralesional corticosteroids, botulinum toxin). Pain scores were higher for procedures involving fingers, toes and armpits, while the least painful areas were the trunk and limbs. Among the patients, 62.5% had no preventive analgesia before the procedure, 37.5% had preventive analgesia and 34.2% underwent local or topical anaesthesia (3.7% by cold, 2.0% by oral premedication, 0.5% by hypnosis and 0.4% by nitrous oxide). CONCLUSION: Awareness of predictive factors for pain could allow better use of analgesic methods to offer the patient relief and improve the quality of the procedure.

Delusional infestation and the specimen sign: a European multicentre study in 148 consecutive cases.

BACKGROUND: Systematic studies of delusional infestation (DI), also known as delusional parasitosis, are scarce. They lack either dermatological or psychiatric detail. Little is known about the specimens that patients provide to prove their infestation. There is no study on the current presentation of DI in Europe. OBJECTIVES: To determine the number of true infestations, to assess with which pathogens patients believe themselves to be infested, and to gather details about the frequency and nature of the specimens and the containers used to store them, based on European study centres. METHODS: Retrospective study of consecutive cases with suspected DI from six centres (Dermatology, Psychiatry, Tropical Medicine) in four European countries (U.K., Germany, Italy, France). RESULTS: In total, 148 consecutive cases of suspected DI were included, i.e. the largest cohort reported. None of the patients had evidence of a genuine infestation, as shown by examinations by dermatologists and/or infectious disease specialists. Only 35% believed themselves to be infested by parasites; the majority reported a large number of other living or inanimate (17%) pathogens. Seventy-one patients (48%) presented with what they believed was proof of their infestation. These specimens were mostly skin particles or hair, and rarely insects (only very few of which were human pathogenic or anthropophilic, and none of these could be correlated with the clinical presentation), and only 4% were stored in matchboxes (three of 71). CONCLUSIONS: This first multicentre study of DI in Europe confirms that the term 'delusional infestation' better reflects current and future variations of this entity than 'delusional parasitosis'. The presentation of proofs of infestation, commonly referred to as 'the matchbox sign', is typical but not obligatory in DI and might better be called 'the specimen sign'.

[Isotretinoin and adolescent depression]. / Isotrétinoïne et dépression à l'adolescence.

BACKGROUND: Isotretinoin, indicated in France in the treatment of severe acne (e.g. nodular acne, acne conglobata or acne likely to result in permanent scarring) resistant to adequate cure by standard systemic antibiotic therapy and topical treatments, has on occasion been suspected of being associated with suicide. A study involving collective reflection on this issue is presented herein. METHODS: The Psychodermatology Group of the French Dermatology Society, made up of dermatologists, psychiatrists, paediatric psychiatrists, psychoanalysts and clinical psychologists, met several times and views were exchanged by e-mail. The first two authors drafted the present article, which was then re-read, modified and approved by the members of the Psychodermatology Group, in particular by the co-authors. The article was then modified at the request of the proofreaders of the Annales de Dermatologie and re-read once more by members of the Psychodermatology Group. RESULTS: Psychological disturbances, including depression and other suicidal tendencies, are extremely common during adolescence and are clearly increased by acne, particularly where it is severe. Isotretinoin does not appear to increase this risk. CONCLUSION: Routine screening should be performed for psychological disturbance in adolescents, particularly among those presenting acne. Prescription of isotretinoin is not contraindicated in subjects presenting depression.

[Association of IgA linear dermatitis and non-Hodgkin's malignant lymphoma]. / Association d'une dermatose à IgA linéaire et d'un lymphome malin non hodgkinien.

The association between linear IgA dermatosis and neoplasia has been the subject of several publications which suggest that the association is not fortuitous. We report a new case in which a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was associated with a linear IgA dermatosis and underline the need for full evaluation in search of an associated neoplasia. However, the neoplasia-LAD association is not a true paraneoplastic syndrome since the two pathologies seldom follow a parallel course.

[Pachydermodactyly in adolescents: a sign of discomfort?]. / Pachydermodactylie de l'adolescent: expression d'un mal-être?

BACKGROUND: Pachydermodactyly is an acquired dermatosis related to psychological disturbances. CASE REPORT: A 16 year-old boy presented with fibrous skin hypertrophy of proximal interphalangeal joint areas of both hands suggestive of pachydermodactyly. Skin biopsy confirmed the fibromatous nature of hypertrophy. The personal history of the child confirmed that pachydermocactyly was due to compulsive rubbing stretching movements in a patient with psychological troubles. CONCLUSIONS: Pachydermodactyly, mainly observed among male teenagers, must be considered as an induced dermatosis and distinguished from primary fibromatosis.

[Darier-Ferrand dermatofibrosarcoma in children]. / Dermatofibrosarcome de Darier-Ferrand de l'enfant.

BACKGROUND: Dermatofibrosarcoma is a tumor relatively ignored in childhood. CASE REPORT: A 11 year-old boy was referred because he suffered from a tumor of the neck, which had progressively developed after a cervical traumatism occurring 4 years earlier. Examination showed a tumor moderately infiltrated, attached to the overlying erythematous skin. Biopsy showed ill-limited dermal and hypodermal proliferation of fusiform cells with a storiform arrangement. Two successive excisions were necessary and the patient is well 2 years later. CONCLUSION: This case confirms responsibility of previous traumatism, progressiveness of course and necessity of large excision.

[Adherence to treatment in chronic skin disorders]. / À propos de l'adhésion au traitement dans les dermatoses chroniques.

Numerous studies report poor therapeutic adherence in chronic disorders, including chronic skin disorders. This article reviews compliance issues in a psychological perspective (mainly through the patient-physician relationship). Potential factors that could influence adherence to treatment related to the disease itself, the treatment, the patient, the physician and the patient-physician relationship are discussed. These different factors may be used to help the patient towards a better observance. Adherence to treatment is necessary in the long-term and has to be managed and reinforced all along. Listening is necessary from the beginning of the treatment in order to identify the specific demands of the patient, representations of the disease and its consequences on quality of life. The dermatologist has to detect and accept inescapable gaps in the follow-up of patients suffering from chronic disease, and try to understand them without discouraging. A genuine therapeutic alliance built through global care, is necessary to obtain adequate adherence to treatment.

Eczema craquelé as a pointer of internal malignancy--a case report.

A case of eczema craquelé associated with gastric adenocarcinoma is reported. There are localized and generalized forms of eczema craquelé, the generalized forms differing from the localized types because they can be signs of metabolic or internal disease such as cancer. The patterns of the condition are reviewed based on the literature and personal observations.

[Variations of the skin permeability in premature newborn infants. Value of the skin vasoconstriction test with neosynephrine]. / Variations de la perméabilité cutanée du nouveau-né prématuré. Intérêt d'un test de vasoconstriction cutanée par la Néosynéphrine.

BACKGROUND: The skin of preterm infants is defective as a barrier and does not function like that of mature until about 2 weeks of age. METHODS: Percutaneous drug absorption was studied by observing the blanching response to aqueous solutions of 10% Neosynephrin applied to a small area of skin on the internal surface of the thigh. The subjects, 10 preterm infants born at gestational ages 29 to 32 weeks (mean: 31 weeks 2 days), were tested when they were aged from day 0 to 7. The controls were 8 normal newborns aged 2 days. All preterm infants were tested a second time at the age 7 to 17 days (mean: 10 days). The blanching response was measured after 5 minutes, and graded on a scale of 0 to 4. RESULTS: The first test was positive grade 2 to 4 in all the preterm babies, while it was negative in the normal newborns. The second test was negative in 7 of the 10 preterm infants; in other 3, the grade was at least 50% lower. Infants nursed under radiant heaters were not different from the other infants. CONCLUSION: Skin permeability is increased in immature infants, but falls steadily until about the age of 10 days. The results of the Neosynephrin test could be useful in predicting the response to topically administered drug.