Mycosis fungoides: A ten-year Turkish experience

Mycosis fungoides is the most common primary cutaneous T cell lymphoma, characterized by erythematous patches and plaque lesions with slow progression to cutaneous tumors or extracutaneous involvements in some patients. We aimed to evaluate the clinical characteristics, treatment responses, disease courses, and mortality rates of our MF cases. The data of 100 patients with MF were retrospectively examined from medical records in our clinic between January 2005 and January 2015. Demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients, disease stage, treatment protocols, response to treatment, recurrence, progression, and mortality rates were recorded. The male to female ratio in patients was 1.2. Mean age at onset of disease was 46, and duration of disease ranged from one to 42 years. At time of diagnosis 31 patients were at stage 1A, 31 at stage 1B, 30 at stage 2A, 2 at stage 2B, 1 at stage 3, and 5 at stage 4. Stable disease was observed in 35% of patients, progression in 10%, relapse in 27%, and complete response in 28%. Large cell transformation was found in 3 patients and additional malignity in 11. Thirty-seven patients (37%) were still surviving disease-free. 10 patients had died, three of them due to disease-related conditions. The most common first-line therapy in our study was phototherapy. It was applied to 87% of patients from stage 1A. Our results are generally consistent with current literature, but disease progression and disease-specific mortality rates were significantly lower than the literature, probably due to early phototherapy.  </p

Clinical and demographic characteristics of pemphigus vulgaris patients

Pemphigus is an autoimmune disease characterized by intraepithelial bullae and erosions in the skin and mucosa. We aimed to evaluate the clinical and demographic characteristics of pemphigus vulgaris (PV) patients who presented to our Department. Patients who presented to our Department between May 2013 and May 2014, were examined dermatologically and diagnosed with PV based on clinical, histological and direct immunofluorescent findings. Name, family name, and gender of the patients, their complaint at presentation, onset time and location of the lesions, the number of lesions, systemic treatments received by patients and patients’ medication histories were recorded. Forty-nine PV patients were included in our study. Among these, 22 (44.9%) were female and 27 (55.1%) male. The mean age of the patients was 53.28±14.70 (range 23 to 79) years. The mean duration of the disease was 44.45±45.68 (range 1 to 180) months. The most common complaints at presentation were lesion in the mouth (47/49) and lesion/blister in the skin (39/49). The onset locations of the lesions were the oropharynx (63.3%), the skin and oropharynx combined (16.3%), the skin (18.4%) and the anus (2%). The chronological order for the sites of involvement were as follows: first the oropharynx then the skin (42.9%), first the skin then the oropharynx (18.4%), and the oropharynx and the skin combined (16.3%). Ten patients (20.4%) had mucosal involvement and one (2%) had skin involvement alone, whereas both mucosal and skin involvements were observed in 38 patients (77.6%). Forty-seven patients (95.9%) had not used any medications that could have led to pemphigus. One patient had a history of beta-blocker use and another had a history of ACE inhibitor prior to the emergence of the pemphigus lesions. The clinical and demographic results of the PV patients in our region were consistent with those from other studies.</p

Prevalence and Dermoscopic Patterns of Acral Melanocytic Nevi in Turkey

Although nevi are frequently encountered in the acral region, very limited studies have reported their prevalence in specific populations. We aimed to determine the prevalence of acral nevi, their dermoscopic patterns, and evaluate patient awareness in a Turkish population. We prospectively examined 2644 patients admitted to the outpatient dermatology clinics between October 2016 and October 2017. The characteristics of the detected acral nevi and dermatoscopic images were recorded. A questionnaire of demographic characteristics was completed from all patients. Two hundred six of the 2644 patients had at least one acral nevus. Two hundred sixty nevi were examined. The general prevalence of acral nevi was 7.8%. Women were more likely to have acral nevi than men (8.7% vs. 6.3%; P=0.028). Moreover, darker-skinned patients were also had significantly more acral nevi (8.6% in skin type III-IV vs. 6.0% in skin type I-II; P<0.001). The prevalence of acral nevi was 9.4% before the age of 20, 9.5% in patients aged 20-40 years, and 4.6% after the age of 40. In addition, 51.5% of all nevi exhibited a parallel furrow, 13.5% were lattice-like, and 7.7% had a homogeneous pattern. The overall nevus awareness rate was 73.8% and was significantly higher in women at 78.3%. Our study is the first large-scale study of that showed the prevalence of acral nevi in Turkey. According to our study, the prevalence of acral nevi was higher in patients with female sex and darker skin type. We also found that the prevalence of acral nevi decreased over 40 years of age. The general awareness of nevi was higher in women

Prevalence and Dermoscopic Patterns of Acral Melanocytic Nevi in Turkey

Although nevi are frequently encountered in the acral region, very limited studies have reported their prevalence in specific populations. We aimed to determine the prevalence of acral nevi, their dermoscopic patterns, and evaluate patient awareness in a Turkish population. We prospectively examined 2644 patients admitted to the outpatient dermatology clinics between October 2016 and October 2017. The characteristics of the detected acral nevi and dermatoscopic images were recorded. A questionnaire of demographic characteristics was completed from all patients. Two hundred six of the 2644 patients had at least one acral nevus. Two hundred sixty nevi were examined. The general prevalence of acral nevi was 7.8%. Women were more likely to have acral nevi than men (8.7% vs. 6.3%; P=0.028). Moreover, darker-skinned patients were also had significantly more acral nevi (8.6% in skin type III-IV vs. 6.0% in skin type I-II; P<0.001). The prevalence of acral nevi was 9.4% before the age of 20, 9.5% in patients aged 20-40 years, and 4.6% after the age of 40. In addition, 51.5% of all nevi exhibited a parallel furrow, 13.5% were lattice-like, and 7.7% had a homogeneous pattern. The overall nevus awareness rate was 73.8% and was significantly higher in women at 78.3%. Our study is the first large-scale study of that showed the prevalence of acral nevi in Turkey. According to our study, the prevalence of acral nevi was higher in patients with female sex and darker skin type. We also found that the prevalence of acral nevi decreased over 40 years of age. The general awareness of nevi was higher in women

Incidence and Prognosis of COVID-19 in Patients with Psoriasis: A Multicenter Prospective Study from the Eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey

COVID-19 infection can have a poor prognosis, especial- ly in patients with chronic diseases and those receiving immunosup- pressive or immunomodulating therapies. This study aimed to investigate the severity of COVID-19 infection in patients with psoriasis and compare the infection severity for sys- temic treatments and comorbidities. We conducted a study in the dermatology clinics of five different centers in the Eastern Black Sea region of Turkey. Four hundred and eighty-eight patients were included, and 22.5% were confirmed as having COVID-19 infection. In our study, the frequency of hospitalization rates due to COVID-19 infection were similar (15.4%, 25.9% respectively) in patients receiv- ing biological treatment and receiving non-biological systemic treat- ment (P=0.344). Hospitalization rates were higher in patients with hypertension, androgenetic alopecia, and acitretin use (P=0.043, P=0.028, P=0.040). In conclusion, current biologic treatments and non-biologic system- ic treatments in patients with psoriasis did not appear to increase the risk of the severe form of COVID-19, except for acitretin

Incidence and Prognosis of COVID-19 in Patients with Psoriasis: A Multicenter Prospective Study from the Eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey

COVID-19 infection can have a poor prognosis, especial- ly in patients with chronic diseases and those receiving immunosup- pressive or immunomodulating therapies. This study aimed to investigate the severity of COVID-19 infection in patients with psoriasis and compare the infection severity for sys- temic treatments and comorbidities. We conducted a study in the dermatology clinics of five different centers in the Eastern Black Sea region of Turkey. Four hundred and eighty-eight patients were included, and 22.5% were confirmed as having COVID-19 infection. In our study, the frequency of hospitalization rates due to COVID-19 infection were similar (15.4%, 25.9% respectively) in patients receiv- ing biological treatment and receiving non-biological systemic treat- ment (P=0.344). Hospitalization rates were higher in patients with hypertension, androgenetic alopecia, and acitretin use (P=0.043, P=0.028, P=0.040). In conclusion, current biologic treatments and non-biologic system- ic treatments in patients with psoriasis did not appear to increase the risk of the severe form of COVID-19, except for acitretin

Systemic comorbidities associated with rosacea: a multicentric retrospective observational study

WOS: 000472185200024PubMed ID: 30575019BackgroundOnce considered a disorder limited to the skin, rosacea is now known to be associated with systemic disorders. The aim of this study was to determine what systemic comorbidities accompany rosacea and to determine the relationship between the type, severity, and duration of rosacea, and the presence of and type of systemic comorbidities. MethodsThis retrospective multicenter study was conducted by the Turkish Society of Dermatology Acne Study Group. Thirteen dermatology clinics throughout Turkey participated in the study. A structured physician-administered questionnaire was used to collect patient demographics, clinical findings, and lifestyle data. The principal rosacea subtype, physician global assessment of severity, and duration of rosacea were recorded. Physicians recorded each participant's medical history, including current and past comorbidities, duration of any such comorbidity, and the use of medications to treat any comorbidities. ResultsThe study included 1,195 rosacea patients and 621 controls without rosacea aged 18-85years. As compared to the controls, more of the rosacea patients had respiratory tract, gastrointestinal system, and metabolic and hepatobiliary system disorders in a rosacea's severity- and duration-dependent manner. ConclusionClinicians must be aware of the potential for systemic comorbidities in rosacea patients, which becomes more likely as disease duration and severity increase