Infantile bullous pemphigoid with "string of pearls sign"

Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is an immune mediated bullous disease that is manifested by urticarial plaques with superimposed subepidermal blisters and significant pruritus. It is generally found in the elderly, but is rare in the pediatric population. A 5-month-old girl previously diagnosed with hand-foot-mouth disease was examined in our dermatology department owing to vesicles and bullae, initially located to the hands and feet, which progressed with new lesions. Tense vesicles and bullae distributed in an annular string of pearls pattern on the abdomen and facial and cervical regions were noted. Histologic and immunologic findings were consistent with the diagnosis of infantile BP. Disease control was obtained with oral prednisolone and dapsone; the patient was still in clinical remission 6 months after treatment cessation. The differential diagnosis of the clinical presentation of the lesions in our patient is of note, given that this blistering pattern is frequently reported in association with linear IgA bullous dermatosis.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

RISK BEHAVIOURS OF PORTUGUESE ADOLESCENTS AND ENVIRONMENT INFLUENCE

Introdução: A adolescência é uma fase de intensa transformação, procura de identidade e necessidade de experimentação. Objetivos: Conhecer os padrões do consumo de drogas e sexualidade dos adolescentes de uma área urbana do grande Porto e analisar a influência do contexto socio-ambiental. Material e métodos: Estudo transversal, e amostra de conveniência de adolescentes inscritos numa escola secundária pública urbana, com realização de um questionário anónimo entre Outubro e Novembro de 2012. Resultados: Obteve-se um total de 141 inquéritos, com 13,8 anos de idade média. Um terço dos adolescentes já tinha experimentado tabaco ou álcool; 8,5% canábis. O consumo de tabaco associou-se significativamente ao de álcool, canábis ou outras drogas. Eram sexualmente ativos, 14,9% dos adolescentes e a idade média de início de atividade sexual foi 13,7 anos. Não utilizaram preservativo na última relação sexual, 28,6%. Verificou-se associação significativa entre atividade sexual e o consumo álcool, canábis ou outras drogas. O consumo de tabaco e de canábis associou-se significativamente com o consumo na família e nos amigos. As retenções escolares associaram-se ao consumo de álcool, tabaco, canábis e outras drogas. Conclusões: O tabaco foi um preditor do consumo de outras substâncias, o que confere extrema importância aos programas dirigidos à prevenção do seu consumo. Dadas as associações significativas, consideramos crucial conhecer o contexto socio--ambiental dos adolescentes, identificando grupos vulneráveis, nos quais estratégias de prevenção seletivas seriam recomendadas. A precocidade do início da atividade sexual observada é preocupante e permite-nos inferir a cerca da elevada prevalência de condutas sexuais de risco

Skyrmion morphology in ultrathin magnetic films

Nitrogen-vacancy magnetic microscopy is employed in quenching mode as a non-invasive, high resolution tool to investigate the morphology of isolated skyrmions in ultrathin magnetic films. The skyrmion size and shape are found to be strongly affected by local pinning effects and magnetic field history. Micromagnetic simulations including static disorder, based on a physical model of grain-to-grain thickness variations, reproduce all experimental observations and reveal the key role of disorder and magnetic history in the stabilization of skyrmions in ultrathin magnetic films. This work opens the way to an in-depth understanding of skyrmion dynamics in real, disordered media.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures, including supplementary information

Ground penetrating radar mapping in rescue archaeology: a study from pego late Bronze Age settlement, Braga (NW Portugal)

Rescue archaeology, sometimes called preventive or salvage archaeology, is archaeological survey and excavation carried out in areas threatened by, or revealed by, construction or other development. Unlike traditional survey and excavation, these works must be undertaken in the shortest possible time. In these scenarios the use of ground penetrating radar (GPR) allows field archaeologists to quickly discover and map buried archaeological features. This paper describes the use of GPR during a rescue archaeology campaign at the Pego Late Bronze Age settlement, near the city of Braga (NW Portugal). Closely spaced GPR transects were collected in a grid-based approach, covering three different areas from the site, using GSSI Sir 3000 System, with antennae frequency of 400MHz. Wave velocities were determined by reflected wave and Hyperbola-Fitting methods. Measured velocities ranged between 0.12-0.14 m/ns. Amplitude slice-maps of the surveyed grids were produced. The interpretation of these maps indicates the existence of several cultural features from Bronze Age (post holes, pits, small trenches and flat graves) at an approximated depth of 50 cm. The information obtained with this GPR survey proved to be very useful. Amplitude slice-maps produced act as primary data that is going to be used to guide the rescue archaeological excavation. These results are significant because they can provide a template for interpretation of future GPR surveys of Late Bronze Age sites in NW Portugal and even in NW Iberia