Potential skin problems of diabetes mellitus patients: a review

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the common metabolic disorders, and a major part of chronic diseases, the prevalence of which tends to increase due to multifactor. Blood vessels, kidneys, lungs, and skin are among the organs that are affected. The first problem that arises, or commonly exists among one-third of diabetics, are problems with their skin, although skin lesions may develop along with the progress of the disease, or can occur during the later phase of DM. The prevalence and symptoms of skin problems in type 1 DM (T1DM) and type 2 DM (T2DM) are often unclear, and at the beginning of the course of the diseases they often go undiagnosed. Several theories regarding the pathophysiology of DM can be used as a logical reference for the early identification and diagnosis of skin problems, aimed at preventing the worsened condition. The use of skin autofluorescence (SAF) and AGEs reader in several cases of skin problems, can also be an important marker as an adjunct to predict the possibility and progressiveness of DM. Skin problems linked to patients with DM can be categorized as strongly related to diabetes, non-specific and related to DM, skin infection in DM, and skin problems due to diabetic medication. With the current COVID-19 pandemic, there are additional demands for more critical investigation of skin problems in patients with DM. The skin problems that occur in DM may need to be examined from the early stage and it is necessary to inhibit the progression of skin problems, as well as to consider the need for multidisciplinary DM therapy

Cost-effectiveness of omalizumab for the treatment of chronic spontaneous urticaria

Background: Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) is a skin disease with itchy hives and/or angio-oedema that last for at least 6 weeks without an obvious external trigger. Objectives: To determine the cost-effectiveness of omalizumab relative to standard of care (SoC; up to four times the daily dose of H1-antihistamines) in the Netherlands from a societal perspective. Methods: The Markov model used consisted of five healt

Prevalence of cutaneous adverse events associated with long-term disease-modifying therapy and their impact on health-related quality of life in patients with multiple sclerosis: A cross-sectional study

Background: Glatiramer acetate (GA) and interferon-beta (IFN-β) are disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for multiple sclerosis that are administered through subcutaneous (SC) or intramuscular (IM) injections. Skin reactions associated with DMTs are common and may influence patient's health-related quality of life (QoL). We aimed to determine the prevalence of cutaneous adverse events associated with long-term DMT use, and to assess the impact of cutaneous adverse events on QoL. Methods: A cross-sectional study among patients with multiple sclerosis who had been treated with their first DMT for at least 2 years. Cutaneous events were assessed from photographs of injection-sites by dermatologists blinded for DMT. Generic and dermatology-specific health-related QoL were assessed using validated patient-reported questionnaires. Results: A total of 229 patients were enrolled, of whom 156 (68%) had at least one skin reaction. The prevalence of cutaneous adverse events was higher for SC DMTs (75-82%) compared to IM DMT (41%) (P < 0.001). Erythema and lipoatrophy were the most common skin reactions, observed in 156 (68%) and 45 (20%) patients, respectively. Dermatology-specific, but not generic, QoL was significantly lower among patients with skin reactions compared to those without. Conclusions: The prevalence of cutaneous adverse events was high in long-term DMT-treatment. Patients with cutaneous adverse events had a lower perceived dermatology-specific QoL

Depletion of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in psoriasis patients, restored by Dimethylfumarate therapy (DMF)

Background Psoriasis and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are chronic inflammatory diseases sharing similar pathogenic pathways. Intestinal microbial changes such as a decrease of bakers' yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae have been reported in IBD, suggesting the presence of a gut-skin axis. Objective To investigate whether the S. cerevisiae abundance was altered in psoriasis patients versus healthy controls, and whether dimethylfumarate (DMF) interacted with this yeast. Methods Using qPCR, faecal samples were compared between psoriasis patients without DMF (n = 30), psoriasis patients with DMF (n = 28), and healthy controls (n = 32).Results Faecal S. cerevisiae abundance was decreased in psoriasis compared to healthy controls (p<0.001). Interestingly, DMF use raised S. cerevisiae levels (p<0.001). Gastrointestinal adverse-effects of DMF were correlated with a higher S. cerevisiae abundance (p = 0.010).In vitro, a direct effect of DMF on S. cerevisiae growth was observed. In addition, anti-Saccharomyces cerevisiae antibodies were not elevated in psoriasis. Conclusion The abundance of baker's yeast S. cerevisiae is decreased in psoriasis patients, but appears to b