Pediatric Dermatology

Danville, Pa. - Hand dermatitis can be difficult to diagnose and treat, according to Christen M. Mowad, M.D., assistant professor, department of dermatology, Geisinger Medical Center, Pennsylvania State College of Medicine.

Washington - When patients come in complaining of weeks, months, and even years of chronic eczema, the physician should immediately suspect overuse of and subsequent addiction to topical corticosteroids.

San Diego - With careful use, smallpox vaccination programs can be implemented on a large scale, and dermatologists will play a big role in its execution by assisting local health departments and preparing their professional colleagues, according to information presented by Colonel John D. Grabenstein, R.Ph., Ph.D., at the recent Infectious Diseases Society of America's annual meeting, held here.

Washington, D.C. - Responding to concerns over increased malignancies seen in animal studies, a pediatric subcommittee of the FDA's Anti-Infective Drugs Advisory Committee said topical immunosuppressant labeling should include a warning against use in children under the age of two.

Iowa City - Patients who undergo oncologic procedures often have different expectations than those who are undergoing a cosmetic procedure.

New Orleans -A research collaboration between members of the International Transplant-Skin Cancer Collaborative (ITSCC) and the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) is yielding some important new information about skin cancer in organ transplant recipients and demonstrates the value of the UNOS database as a rich and reliable public resource for investigating issues relating to those patients, said Clark C. Otley, M.D.

Barcelona - Promising advances have been in the development of prophylactic vaccines targeting human papillomavirus (HPV), the major cause of cervical cancer and a possible contributing factor in non-melanoma skin cancers, according to Reinhard Kirnbauer, M.D., Associate Professor of Dermatology at the University of Vienna Medical School in Austria.

Barcelona, Spain - A systematic approach is best when investigating patients who report itch but have no rash, according to Joanna Wallengren, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor in the department of dermatology, University Hospital in Lund, Sweden. Dr. Wallengren described her approach to this at the 12th Congress of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology here.

Las Vegas -- Dermatologists must avoid the shotgun approach to antibiotics and pay more attention to potential drug interactions, said James Q. Del Rosso, D.O., F.A.O.C.D. This way, they can avoid contributing to two alarming trends in pharmacologic therapy: antibiotic resistance and potentially significant dangerous drug reactions.

Las Vegas - New pharmaceuticals including calcineurin inhibitors represent viable alternatives to traditional treatments for eczematous dermatoses, according to Joseph F. Fowler, Jr., M.D. He is a clinical professor of dermatology in Kentucky's University of Louisville School of Medicine, and estimated he has treated several thousand dermatitis patients.

Quantel Medical is conducting a worldwide clinical study on the Aramis Er:Glass 1.54 micron laser to treat inflammatory acne.

Genital ulcer disease symptoms increase during and after acquiring HIV, say researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Rakia in Uganda.

Abbott Laboratories, which manufactures Collagenase Santyl Ointment, will take over U.S. marketing of the product through its Ross Products Division beginning Jan. 1.

About 9 percent of the U.S. population is affected by atopic dermatitis, and that percentage is growing according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI).

Las Vegas - According to Guy Webster, M.D., the best topical treatment for rosacea is metronidazole. Oral rosacea therapies he has found to be effective are tetra-, doxy- and minocycline, Cipro (ciprofloxacin hydrochloride), Bactrim (trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole), and isotretinoin.

Las Vegas - Much of what is new in dermatologic therapy represents off-label use of marketed drugs, but clinicians should not let that fact necessarily deter them from prescribing what may be very safe and effective therapy, said Stephen Stone, M.D., at the Fall Clinical Dermatology Conference.

Dr. M has practiced dermatology for 25 years. During that time he has hired and fired secretaries, nurses, and licensed medical assistants.

New Orleans - Combination therapy has proven effective in treating vitiligo in a small number of patients, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Dermatologic Surgeons, held here last month.

Las Vegas -- The landscape of dermatologic diseases manifested by HIV-positive (HIV+) patients has changed in the era of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), said Clay J. Cockerell, M.D., at the Fall Clinical Dermatology Conference.

Las Vegas -- Recent innovations in topical therapies are providing valuable alternatives for the management of some challenging dermatologic conditions, said Mark Lebwohl, M.D., at the Fall Clinical Dermatology Conference.

For the second time in two years, lawmakers have created federal tax cuts designed to spur business investment.

Chicago - The dermatological ecology of South Africa, a context considerably different from its North American counterpart, was discussed at this year's L'Oreal Ethnic Skin and Hair Conference here from Sept. 19 to 21, 2003.

Q: Is there a way for me to charge for dressing changes in my office?

Cleveland - Adolescent tanning behavior has not received sufficient attention by researchers and should be considered with other risk behaviors such as substance abuse and sexual activity, according to Catherine Demko, Ph.D., a research associate at the Comprehensive Cancer Center of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. Dr. Demko and colleagues looked more closely at this modifiable cancer-causing behavior by studying a nationally representative sample of 6,903 non-Hispanic white adolescents, aged 13 to 19 years. The teens had responded between April 1, 1996 and Aug. 31, 1996 to a survey about adolescent behaviors for the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.

London - Could the simple act of writing help patients recover quicker?