A clinicoepidemiological study of 50 cases of cutaneous tuberculosis in a tertiary care teaching hospital in Pokhara, Nepal

<b>Background:</b> Cutaneous tuberculosis (TB) is essentially an invasion of the skin by <i>Mycobacterium tuberculosis</i>, the same bacteria that causes pulmonary tuberculosis. <b>Aim:</b> This study was conducted to study the common types of cutaneous TB and to find the management pattern in a tertiary teaching hospital in Pokhara, Nepal. <b>Materials and Methods:</b> All the cases of cutaneous TB were biopsied and furthermore investigated by performing Mantoux test, sputum examination, fine needle aspiration cytology, chest X-ray and ELISA. <b>Results:</b> In this study, we found that tuberculosis verrucous cutis (48&#x0025;) had a higher incidence than other types of cutaneous TB. More males were affected than were females (1.2:1). Commonly affected sites were the limb and the buttock (48&#x0025;). The most commonly affected age group was 16-25 years (40&#x0025;). All cases (except two) were more than 15 mm in size in the Mantoux test. The histopathological picture was typical in all except three cases. All patients were treated with antitubercular treatment as per the national guidelines. <b>Conclusion:</b> The most common type of cutaneous TB was tuberculosis verrucous cutis and the most commonly affected sites were the limb and the buttock. As cutaneous TB sometimes reflects the presence of pulmonary tuberculosis, its incidence should not be ignored

Clinical profile and management pattern of melasma patients in Western Nepal: A hospital based study

Introduction: Melasma is an acquired hypermelanosis of sun-exposed areas. Melasma is much more common in women than in men. Women are affected in 90% of cases. The patient usually presents with tan to brown patches. Multiple factors have been postulated to involve in the etiology and pathogenesis of melasma including pregnancy, oral contraceptives, genetics, sun exposure, cosmetics and race. Objectives: The objectives of the present studies are to study the demographic details of the melasma patients visiting the Manipal Teaching Hospital (MTH), to study the drugs used in management of melasma and to estimate the treatment cost to the patients. Materials and methods: We went through the records of the patient at MTH and found out the number of patients suffering from melasma and other related data from 25th November 2005 to 30th November 2007. The data obtained were analyzed as per the study objectives. Results: Altogether 107 patient files were included in the study. There were 75 (70.09%) females and 32 (29.90%) males (the total is 107). More than 50% of the patients were above the age 20 years. Most common site of occurrence of pigmentation was forehead accounting for 56.45% (n= 70) of the total case followed by cheeks 12.09% (n=15). Altogether 290 drugs were used in the patients with a Mean □ SD of 2.71 □ 0.89 drugs per patient. The Mean □ SD cost of medications was NRs 458 □ 251.36. Conclusion: The present study analyzed the clinical profile and treatment pattern of the melasma patients visiting MTH. Majority of the patients were of child bearing age. Sun screens were the most commonly employed medications followed by antioxidants 20 (6.89%) and antibiotics 18 (6.2%).</p

Study - Pityriasis versicolor in the pediatric age group

BACKGROUND: Pityriasis versicolor (PV) is a mild chronic infection of the skin caused by Malassezia yeasts. Although it is primarily seen in adults, children are often affected in the tropics . METHODS: Over a period of 2 years, children (up to the age of 14 years) who were clinically and mycologically diagnosed as PV were included in the study. The clinical and epidemiological pattern in different age groups was noted. RESULTS: PV in this age group formed about 31% of the total cases of PV; 4.8% cases presented in infancy. The commonest site of involvement was the face in 39.9% of the cases. Most of the cases presented in summer months. CONCLUSIONS: PV is not an uncommon disease among children in the tropics. There is a sudden resurgence of cases in the hot monsoons and even infants are not spared