Psoriasis and staphylococcus aureus skin colonization in Moroccan patients

Psoriatic lesions are rarely complicated by recurrent infections. The aim of our study is to determine skin colonisation and nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus in patients with psoriasis and in healthy  persons. Patients and methods: a comparative study that include 33 patients with psoriasis and 33  healthy persons.Samples were taken from lesional and non lesional psoriatic skin and from healthy skin of control group. For S. aureus nasal carriage, we used sterile cotton tipped swabs. Out of165 samples (66 skin samples and 33 nasal swabs), 26 S. Aureus strains were isolated in 26 persons, 57.69% in the  control group and 42.3% in the psoriasisgroup. S. aureus skin colonization was found in one case (3%) inlesional psoriatic skin vs 9 cases (27.3%) in control skin OR=0.08 IC 95% (0.01-0.70) p=0.02 and in 12,1% in non lesional soriatic skin vs 27, 3% in control skin (p =0,13). This colonization was less important in lesional psoriatic skin (3%) than in non lesional psoriatic skin (12.1%) p= 0.20. Nasal screening identified (7/33) 21, 21% S. aureus carriers in psoriasis group and in control group. Our results are in consensus withliterature findings. They have confirmed the importance of antimicrobial peptides in Innateimmunity of human skin. These peptides are normally produced bykeratinocytes in response to inflammatory stimuli such as psoriasis. Their high  expression in psoriasis skin reduces the risk of skin infection and skin colonization with S. Aureus.Key words: Antimicrobial peptides, innate immunity, nasal carriage, psoriasis, skin colonization, staphylococcus aureu

Hypotrichosis with juvenile macular dystrophy: Portuguese case

Hypotrichosis with juvenile macular dystrophy is a rare congenital disease mainly found in the Druze population of Northern Israel. This disorder is caused by the CDH3 mutation encoding P-cadherin, which is expressed in retinal pigment epithelium and hair follicles. An 11-year-old girl who was born to related Portuguese parents, had hypotrichosis since birth and macular dystrophy diagnosed at age 5. Fundus examination and fluorescein angiography revealed located macular pigmentary abnormalities. No molecular analysis was done. A fundus examination should be considered mandatory in the assessment of congenital hypotrichosis

Oral White Sponge Nevus: An Exceptional Differential Diagnosis in Childhood

White sponge nevus is an autosomal dominant skin disorder characterized by white, irregular, diffuse plaques mainly affecting the oral mucosa. Histological findings of white sponge nevus are characteristic but not pathognomonic. We report a case of an oral white sponge nevus in a 6-year-old girl, which poses a problem in differential diagnosis with oral candidiasis. No treatment was performed because of the benign and asymptomatic nature of the lesions