eczema

Context: 

Skin diseases encompass a broad spectrum, ranging from common issues such as acne and dermatitis to more serious conditions like psoriasis, melanoma, and autoimmune disorders. These ailments can significantly affect both physical health and psychological well-being, often necessitating intricate and long-term management.

Evidence Acquisition: 

Skin diseases arise due to a variety of factors, including genetic, environmental, and immunological influences, which can manifest as inflammation, infection, or abnormal cell growth. This review provides an in-depth examination of common skin diseases, their underlying causes, and current treatment approaches. Despite advancements in treatment, achieving long-term remission and managing side effects remain challenging, thereby highlighting the potential role of supportive herbal remedies, traditionally used for treating skin conditions.

Herbs such as Aloe vera , turmeric, neem, and chamomile are recognized for their anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties, showing promise in the treatment of various skin disorders.

This review explores the potential of these herbs, including their active compounds, and illustrates how herbal remedies might complement existing treatments, enhancing their effectiveness while minimizing side effects.

Eczema, a common inflammatory skin condition characterized by itching and dermatitis, can significantly impact the quality of life. While conventional treatments exist, there is interest in exploring natural alternatives. This study investigates the efficacy of a rosehip extract-based cream in mitigating eczema symptoms in a mouse model.

Thirty-five mice were divided into five groups: control, dinitrochlorobenzene (DNCB)-induced eczema (model group), and treatment groups receiving placebo, betamethasone cream (positive control), or rosehip extract cream. Following topical treatment for four weeks, the animals were euthanized, and their skin was evaluated for inflammation, moisture, and thickness. Histopathological analysis was performed using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining.

Compared to the control group, DNCB treatment significantly increased inflammation, erythema (redness), dryness, and epidermal thickness. Notably, topical application of the rosehip extract cream significantly reduced these eczema-associated parameters, demonstrating efficacy comparable to the positive control (betamethasone cream).

This study suggests that a topical cream formulated with rosehip extract may be a promising therapeutic strategy for alleviating eczema symptoms. The anti-inflammatory and potentially regenerative properties of rose extract warrant further investigation for the development of natural eczema treatments.

Demodex spp., a cosmopolitan mite, can exist as a commensal or parasitic organism. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of Demodex spp. infestation in patients with common skin diseases and explore the potential association between demodicosis and these conditions in Urmia, northwest Iran.

A total of 246 patients attending the Skin Polyclinic of Iranian Urmia Taleghani Hospital were enrolled in the study. Samples were taken from the nose wings, cheeks, and forehead regions of the face area of the persons using the standard superficial skin biopsy method.

Demodicosis was detected in 43 (16.3%) patients, with 42 cases attributed to D. folliculorum and 1 case to D. brevis infestation. The highest positivity was found in the 31‒50 (21.4%) and 51‒72 (22.2%) age groups. In the rela tionship between demodicosis and skin diseases, Demodex spp. was found in 13 (32.5%) of 40 patients who had skin disease; 6 of these patients with rosacea (42.9%) and 7 with eczema (29.2%). Mite infestation was found in 6 (37.5%) of 16 patients who had hemodialysis due to renal insufficiency. Furthermore, 46.7% of positive patients reported using common goods. The prevalence of demodicosis was similar among patients residing in villages (17.2%) and cities (17.6%).

This study sheds light on the potential association between Demodex infestation and common skin diseas es such as rosacea and eczema in Urmia, Iran. Therefore, there is a pressing need to augment research endeavors on de modicosis.

Actinrelated protein 2/3 complex subunit 1B (ARPC1B) deficiency is an inborn error of immunity (IEI) characterized by a combination of immunodeficiency and immune dysregulation and classified as an IEI with allergic manifestations. Here, we describe two patients with pathogenic variants in the ARPC1B gene. The first patient presented with eczema and bronchospasm at six months of age. The second patient presented with eczema and milk protein allergy at five months of age. The c.899_944 (p.Glu300Glyfs*7) pathogenic variant was previously described, whereas the c.863del (p.Pro288Leufs*9) variant was novel. ARPC1B deficiency should be considered because of the severe allergic manifestations at an early age.

 Palmoplantar keratodermas (PPK) represents a group of skin disorders characterized by excessive epidermal thickening of palms and soles. They are classically divided into inherited and acquired groups. Dermoscopy is a non-invasive procedure that can aid in the clinical diagnosis of PPK.

 To study the clinical features and dermoscopic patterns of PPK caused by various dermatological conditions.

 Ninety-eight patients with various types of PPK were included in this cross-sectional observational study after obtaining informed consent. Symptoms, general systemic findings, and dermatological manifestations were recorded. The dermoscopic examination was performed by a single observer using Heine Delta 20+ and FotoFinder Medicam 1000. Diagnostically challenging cases were biopsied for histopathological examination. SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) version 20 [IBM SPSS statistics (IBM Corp. Armonk, NY, USA released 2011)] was used to perform statistical analyses. The chi-square test was applied to examine statistical associations between qualitative variables. The level of significance was set at 5%.

 Out of 98 cases with PPK, 93 were acquired, and 5 were inherited. The commonest dermoscopy pattern included palmoplantar psoriasis (n = 48), showing a background light red color with yellow diffused white scales with regular dotted and glomerular vessels, followed by palmoplantar eczema (n = 39) (light red color with yellow patchy white background, yellow scales, and patchy dotted vessels). Light red/dull red background with diffuse white scaling and regular linear, dotted, or glomerular vessels were significantly in favor of palmoplantar psoriasis, while a yellow background, diffuse yellow scaling, patchy dotted vessels, and yellow crust were more in favor of palmoplantar dermatitis. Pityriasis rubra pilaris (PRP) (n = 3) showed a light red background, diffused white scales, and dotted and linear vessels with patchy distribution. Lichen planus (n = 2) revealed a light red color with a yellow background, diffused and peripheral white scales, and irregular linear (radial) and dotted vessels. Wickham’s striae were found on palms. Tinea manuum with pedis (n = 1) showed a dull red background and diffused white and yellow scales with the localization of the scales in the skin furrows. PPK secondary to ichthyosis vulgaris (n = 3) revealed a light red background with diffused white and yellow patchy scaling and regular linear and patchy glomerular vessels. Greither’s disease showed a light red color with a yellow background, a diffused white scale pattern, and multiple dotted vessels arranged in an irregular pattern. Erythrokeratodermia variabilis showed a background color of light red and diffused white scales in a crisscross pattern.

 Dermoscopy can reveal characteristic but not pathognomonic dermoscopic patterns that can be useful in the clinical diagnosis of various types of PPK. More studies with larger sample sizes may help validate these findings and identify new patterns.

Healthcare workers (HCWs) need to perform new preventive measures to protect themselves and patients against ongoing COVID-19 transmission, which can increase hand dermatitis (HD) among them. This study aims to investigate the prevalence of HD among HCWs and its possible risk factors in IRAN.

A survey of 159 HCWS working in university hospitals was performed from August to September 2020 in a cross-sectional study. Research data were collected via standardized self-administered questionnaire. The history of HD was determined via standardized Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire (NOSQ-2002).

The prevalence of HD in the study population was 51.6%. A significant association was found between the prevalence of HD among HCWs and sex, age, working hours per week, and wearing gloves (P<0.05).  Females had a 3.84 fold higher risk of HD than males (confidence interval (CI): 1.85-8). HCWs older than 40 and those who aged 30-39 had a 9.6 and 1.72 fold higher risk of HD than those aged 20-29 (CI: 2.6-35.7; CI: 0.87-3.4, respectively).

Possible risk factors for developing HD among HCWs are female gender, age, wearing gloves, and fewer working hours per week. Preventive measures for HD are needed for HCWs, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The abundance of plants with medicinal values has been of great impact on the skincare industry in Nigeria.  However, proper documentation of plants with skincare values has not been made. Hence, this study was aimed at surveying the traditional medicinal values of some commonly used plants for the management of skin conditions by herbal practitioners in Ilorin metropolis. Ethnobotanical and demographic information of willing respondents were obtained on the most commonly used medicinal plants via semi-structured questionnaires and oral interviews. The names of the plants were further confirmed in the world flora online (www.worldfloraonline.org). A total of 57 plants species representing 30 families, were reported by 62 respondents including males (40%) and females (60%) designated as herbs sellers (32%), traditional medicine practitioners (16%), farmers (8%), housewives (11 %) and Herb sellers/traditonal medicine practitioners (33%). Their knowledge sources include inheritance (40%), training (24 %), and a combination of inheritance and training (36%). Euphorbiaceae was the most cited (11 %) plant family, the leaves were the most cited (48%) plant part used, crush to extract juice was the most widely used (51%) method of preparation, and topical application on the affected spot was the most reported (43%) method of administration. The plants mentioned in this survey were reported to have applications against psoriasis, eczema, boils, acne, measles, dandruff, rashes, and wounds. General skin conditions represented the most commonly mentioned (14%) skin condition while mastitis was the least mentioned (1%) condition.  Also, the highest (0.923) informant consensus factor (ICF) was mentioned for insect bites while the least (0.263) ICF was mentioned for general skin conditions. This study documented some of the medicinal plants that have been used to treat various skin-related conditions most of which have been mentioned in available scientific pieces of literature.

Work related dermatitis is one of the most prevalent diseases, which its economic and social effects on the individual and the society is considerable. The Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire (NOSQ-2002) is known as a comprehensive and standardized tools for screening the occupational skin diseases.The main purpose of this study was to translate and cross-culturally adapt the NOSQ-2002/SHORT into Persian. A survey cultural translation carried out during 2018 in Mashhad, Iran. The NOSQ-2002/SHORT adaptation process included the forward translation and reconciliation, back translation and an expert panel assessment. The content validity ratio (CVR) and content validity index (CVI) were calculated according the to Lawshe formula. The Persian version of the questionnaire was tested in 30 workers attended the training courses for health ID card confirmation as a pilot study and were confirmed by physical examination. Base on the participants’ opinion, the ambiguous questions were modified by the expert panel. All the 15 questions had a CVR of 0.6 and higher. The overall content validity index of the questionnaire was equal to 0.80. Some obscure words not good understood by the pilot study participants were revised. The results of the questionnaire declaration was matched with the physical examination for each worker. The Persian version of the NOSQ-2002/SHORT questionnaire is now available for researchers for assessment hand eczema in the work settings. Further research is suggested to evaluate the validity of the Persian version of NOSQ-2002.

Duplilumab is approved to treat mild to moderate atopic dermatitis.  It is unclear, however, whether Dupilumab is effective for occupational hand eczema. In this article, we describe a 29-year-old nurse who developed severe hand eczema after working in a hospital for 6 years and received inadequate relief from routine treatment. Duplilumab was administered to the patient with great results.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common skin disorder with symptoms including severe pruritus and eczematous lesions. AD affects between 5 and 20% of people in their life. Silymarin (SM) is a polyphenolic flavonoid from Silybum marianum L.  and has several therapeutic characteristics including antiallergic, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory properties. Fumaria officinalis is a small plant that has a high antioxidant power and modulating effects on the immune system. Therefore, the current study intended to examine the influence of these two herbs extract on severity and symptoms of AD in patients. 40 patients with mild to moderate eczema randomly received mometasone 0.1% or the herbal cream. Treatment course was 2 weeks and patients were examined before and after 2 weeks of treatment using the SCORAD system. The reduction of SCORAD score was significant in both groups (p=0.04 in the herbal group and p=0.03 in the mometasone group) but no significant difference was observed between the groups. Mean SCORAD score was 27.66±5.9 before therapy and 4.77±1.6 after therapy in the mometasone group and mean SCORAD score was 26.05±7.1 before therapy and 6.944±2.6 after therapy in the herbal group. The current study indicated the impact of these two herbs extract on severity and symptoms of AD in patients; these plants may be a new treatment in reducing eczema symptoms and its problems.

Allergic disorders such as asthma, urticaria, eczema, and allergic rhinitis are common worldwide, and allergens are the most common etiology and exacerbating factors. So, This study aimed to find the allergens in these patients with skin prick tests.

All the allergic cases referred to an allergic clinic in the north of Iran were visited by an allergist and clinical immunologist. Based on patient history, physical examination, and diagnosis, we select food allergens and aeroallergens. A standard skin prick test was performed on all patients, and all data was then analyzed SPSS 20.

Two thousand one hundred and twenty-eight cases entered the study with a mean age of 27.65 ± 15.52 years old. 1235 (58.04%) females and 893 males (41.96%) participated in this study. Prevalence of allergic rhinitis, asthma, urticaria, and eczema were 717 (33.7%), 611 (28.8%), 550 (25.8%), and 250 (11.7%), respectively. The most common aeroallergens were Dermatophagoides farinae (75.9%), Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (65.4%), feather (56.1%), and Candida (51.1%), respectively, in all patients. The most common food allergens were egg white (31.1%), cacao (29.7%), and egg yolk (28.9%), respectively, in all cases.

Both aeroallergens and food allergens were the most common in all allergens by skin prick test. Therefore, it is important to find the relationship between sensitization and allergy.

Hand hygiene is one of the most crucial measures against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission; however, frequent handwashing may lead to contact dermatitis causing many problems. Occupational hand dermatitis is a relatively common but challenging issue that imposes a negative effect on the quality of life, work performance, and adherence to hygiene principles. We performed a cross-sectional study to assess the psychosocial impacts of hand dermatitis on healthcare workers (HCWs) using an online Persian version of the Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire (NOSQ-2002). Sixty-three from a total of 390 HCWs (21%) reported that hand eczema had adverse effects on their occupation, such as a necessity to use gloves (17.3%) and decreased adherence to hand hygiene (14%). HCWs reported a higher exacerbation of hand dermatitis in winter (40.3%) and fall (24.7%). Hand dermatitis exerted a significant impact on sporting activities, sleep, social life, mood, and sex in 17.7%, 43.3%, 44.3%, 66%, and 11.7% of HCWs, respectively. It seems that hand dermatitis-related impairment of the mentioned activities has increased in HCWs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Allergic rhinitis and eczema are two common global diseases that can lead to impaired quality of life. Determining the prevalence of these allergic disorders can be useful in planning prevention and treatment. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and severity of allergic rhinitis and eczema in adolescents living in Yazd city. Using an electronic questionnaire based on the Global Asthma Network (GAN) core questionnaire, 5141 adolescents aged 13–14 years were cross-sectionally surveyed. The prevalence of current symptoms of rhinitis turned out to be 36.3%, proving significantly higher in boys (p=0.009). Moreover, the prevalence of allergic rhinitis and rhinoconjunctivitis in the past year leveled at 12.4% and 10.5%, respectively; however, the former was significantly higher in females (p=0.014). Additionally, severe rhinoconjunctivitis was observed in 0.2% of the participants with no gender preference (p=0.09). Confirmed hay fever by a doctor was reported in 13.2% of adolescents, significantly higher in males (p<0.001). The prevalence of current itchy rash and current eczema was found to be 5.5%, and 2.9%, respectively, with no difference in terms of gender. Severe atopic eczema and eczema confirmed by a doctor were seen in 0.4% and 5% of the participants, no gender preference was identified. Concurrent prevalence of current rhinoconjunctivitis and eczema was detected in 1% of the participants. Despite the increasing trend of allergic diseases in most parts of the world, the prevalence of rhinoconjunctivitis and eczema in adolescents has not increased in Yazd in the last two decades, and this city is located in a low to moderate prevalence area.