Journal of Skin and Stem Cell
Volume:7 Issue: 4, Dec 2020

Context:

 Elderlies are more prone to neurodegenerative diseases. One of the most common neurodegenerative diseases with limited effective treatments available is Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) with neuroregenerative and neuroprotective capabilities have shown great potential to serve as a potential cellular therapy for AD. Adipose-derived stem cells’ efficacy in the treatment of AD is evaluated in this systematic review.

Data Sources: 

Literature search was performed via PubMed, Cochrane Library, ScienceDirect, Wiley Online Library, and EBSCOhost databases, selecting studies which evaluated the effect of ADSCs on AD from inception to 6 August 2020. The SYRCLE Risk of Bias tool was used to assess pre-clinical studies in animal models, and MINORS Risk of Bias tool was used to assess non-randomized phase 1 clinical trials.

 Overall, seven studies, including two in-vitro studies, four in-vivo mice model studies, and one non-randomized phase 1 clinical trial, were included in this systematic review. Adipose-derived stem cells showed significant potential, proven by their neuroregenerative (i.e., increased neurogenesis, synaptogenesis, synaptic and dendritic stability, and cognitive and spatial skills) and neuroprotective capabilities (i..e., decreased Aβ concentration, APP-CT concentration, P-tau concentration, number of amyloid plaques, oxidative stress, and neuron apoptosis when exposed to Aβ). Adipose-derived stem cells demonstrated promising efficacy in treating AD patients.

Pemphigus is a chronic autoimmune vesiculobullous disease caused by autoantibodies directed against desmogleins (Dsgs). Pemphigus vegetans is a rare variant of pemphigus vulgaris, characterized by vegetative plaques, primarily occurring in flexures. It is a less common disease and involves the skin and mucosa due to disintegration of cellular adherence (acantholysis), resulting in intradermal split. We report this case of pemphigus vegetans of Neumann type for its rare presentation. We report a case of pemphigus vegetans, involving lips in a middle-aged female and sparing flexural areas. This patient was diagnosed on the basis of histopathology and treated successfully with intralesional steroids, resulting in the resolution of her plaques.

Atopic dermatitis is a common skin disease in children. Severe pruritus and eczematous lesions may interfere with the quality of life of the patients.

This study was designed to assess the validity and reliability of the Persian version of the children’s dermatology life quality index questionnaire.

After obtaining final acceptance by the first developers of the questionnaire for developing a Persian version, it was distributed to 100 children affected with atopic dermatitis aged 5 to 15 years. We analyzed data by SPSS18. Then, we evaluated the validity and reliability of the questionnaire by Kaiser criterion and Cronbach’s alpha.

Questions number 1 (itching) and 6 (sports activities) achieved the highest and the lowest scores, respectively. Cronbach’s alpha was assessed as 0.87, demonstrating good reliability. Inter-item correlation coefficients ranged from 0.24 to 0.69. A one-factor structure was achieved by Kaiser criterion and scree plot.

Our study demonstrated good reliability and validity of the Persian version of the children’s dermatology Life Quality Index Questionnaire. There was a significant positive relationship between the severity of the disease and the score of quality of life. However, there was no relationship between the quality of life and the demographic features of the participants.

Mucosal lichen planus is a chronic inflammatory debilitating condition that commonly affects the oral mucosa, but other sites such as the genital and ocular mucosae, esophagus and ear canal may also be involved, with risk of scarring and functional compromise. Spontaneous remission is rare and the condition tends to be recalcitrant to therapy, which makes management challenging. Topical therapies are often ineffective in severe cases and official treatment guidelines including systemic agents and procedural interventions are currently not available.

We performed a literature review on current systemic therapies for mucosal lichen planus using PubMed, MEDLINE and Cochrane databases, with 74 publications identified including retrospective and prospective studies, case reports, and clinical trials. Therapies reviewed included biologics, immunosuppressive therapies, immunomodulating and anti-inflammatory drugs, vitamin A derivatives, devices and interventional therapies, and non-prescription drugs.

Reported treatments were classified into the following categories: biologics, anti-metabolic immunosuppressives, direct anti-T cell agents, other immunodulatory agents, antibiotics, retinoids, and procedure based interventions. Most studies on mucosal lichen planus are descriptive in nature and demonstrate low levels of evidence. Randomized controlled trials are lacking, which makes it difficult to directly compare different grading scales and outcome.

The authors suggest clinical criteria for initiation of therapy in mucosal lichen planus, such as severe disease, lack of response to topical therapy, mucous membranes involvement and involvement of organs at risk of non-function. The authors also propose a stepwise treatment algorithm based on data from this review and their personal experience in an academic tertiary referral center.

Hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) is common, but nail changes have not been well described. We described nail changes in HFMD. Nail changes following (HFMD) in two outpatient clinics were assessed over two years. Out of 524 cases of HFMD, 40 patients (7.6%) presented with nail problems, 29 cases had onychomadesis, and 11 cases had Beau’s lines. The median age of the subjects was 36 (15 - 126) months, and slight male preponderance (23:17) was seen. HFMD is a common disease having delayed nail changes also. So identification of and preventive strategies are required to limit complications.