Aysun Sikar Akturk

Dermoscopy is a suitable method for the observation of the pregnancy-related changes in melanocytic nevi

Background  It is a common opinion that expansion and darkening in melanocytic nevi may occur during pregnancy. The main problem is that whether it is a usual finding, or it is a condition that requires suspicion about melanoma.

The increase rates of syphilis in Turkey in the beginning of the third millennium

Editor Syphilis remains a major health problem throughout the world at present. The incidence of syphilis increased disproportionately among socioeconomically disadvantaged minority populations, especially in major cities. The purpose of this study was to estimate with these data whether syphilis rates were increased during the year 2000 in five major cities of Turkey. The syphilis prevalence documents were provided by the Turkey Ministry of Health and subdivided for each year from 1994 to 2000. Five big cities of various geographical regions visited especially for tourism or commercial purposes, such as _ Istanbul, _ Izmir, Ankara, Antalya and Trabzon, were chosen. The number of the syphilitic cases in Turkey according to years (1994–2000) is shown in Table 1 and Fig. 1. The incidence of syphilis decreased from 4.61 to 4.43 per 100 000 people from 1994 to 1996 in Turkey; however, it increased from 4.43 to 4.95 per 100 000 people from 1996 to 2000 (increasing rate: 1%). However, in _ Istanbul, the increase rate of incidence of syphilis is 48%. In Trabzon, it increased from 6.58 to 8.50 per 100 000 people from 1994 to 1999. This rate is determined as 5.01 in 2000 in Trabzon. The rate of syphilis increased from 3.92 to 4.70 per 100 000 people in _ Izmir from 1994 to 2000. It decreased from 4.32 to 3.27 and from 3.47 to 2.95 in Ankara and in Antalya, respectively. The World Health Organization reported that syphilis began to increase worldwide in the 1980s. The rate of syphilis increased from 2001 to 2005 in the United States. Overall increases were observed primarily among homosexual men. On the other hand, there was an increase in the notification rate for syphilis in the Russian Federation in the 1990s. In Russian federation, the prevalence of syphilis was 277 per 100 000 total population in 1990s, a 43-fold increase over the 1989 levels. Borisenko et al. reported that these sexually transmitted disease epidemics cause direct suffering and may be important in significantly enhancing the transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), alteration in sexual behaviour and epidemics of drug use via injection and association with HIV transmission. In Turkey, the prevalence of syphilis decreased from 8.10 to 4.86 per 100 000 people between1985 and 1996. In addition, it the number of the cases of syphilis increased in Trabzon after 1992 and reached a peak in 1994 because of alteration in sexual behaviour and a great number of people from former Soviet Union visited Turkey in the 1990s. Therefore, the average syphilis rate was determined as 8.5 cases per 100 000 persons in 1999. This value is higher than the prevalence in Turkey. Smacchia et al. showed that immigrates from the former Soviet Union had a high rate of active syphilis. After opening the border between Turkey and the former Soviet Union, a great number of people from these countries visited Turkey for tourism or commercial purposes, especially Trabzon, which is a trade city in the eastern part of the Black Sea region and _ Istanbul. We think that this situation is the most important cause of the increase in syphilis in Trabzon and _ Istanbul. This increase was especially prominent

Cushing’s syndrome induced by high‐potency topical corticosteroids

1 Bechet PE. Hypertrophic lupus erythematosus. Arch Derm Syphilol 1940; 42: 211–213. 2 Al-Mutairi N, Rijhwani M, Nour-Eldin O. Hypertrophic lupus erythematosus treated successfully with acitretin as monotherapy. J Dermatol 2005; 32: 482–486. 3 Suwattee P, Cham PMH, Werling RW, et al. Challenge. Am J Dermatopathol 2008; 30: 635. 4 Fabbri P, Cardinali C, Giomi B, et al.. Cutaneous lupus erythematosus. Am J Clin Dermatol 2003; 4: 449–465. 5 Uitto J, Santa-Cruz DJ, Eisen AZ, et al.. Verrucous lesions in patients with discoid lupus erythematosus. Br J Dermatol 1978; 98: 507–520. 6 Daldon PE, Macedo de Souza E, Cintra ML. Hypertrophic lupus erythematosus: a clinicopathological study of 14 cases. J Cutan Pathol 2003; 30: 443–448. 7 Green SJ, Piette WW. Successful treatment of hypertrophic lupus erythematosus with isotretinoin. J Am Acad Dermatol 1987; 17: 364–368. 8 Rubenstein DJ, Huntley AC. Keratotic lupus erythematosus: treatment with isotretinoin. J Am Acad Dermatol 1986; 14: 910–914. 9 Seiger E, Roland S, Goldman S. Cutaneous lupus treated with topical tretinoin: a case report. Cutis 1991; 47: 351–355.

Rosacea associated with etanercept

Joint Bone Spine - In Press.Proof corrected by the author Available online since samedi 7 decembre 2013

Contact sensitivity in Behçet's disease

Context: Behçet’s disease (BD) is a multisystemic inflammatory disorder with unknown etiology. Many immunological changes were reported in BD previously and these changes may affect the frequency of contact sensitivity in these patients. Objective: We aimed to identify whether there is an interaction between contact sensitivity and BD. Methods: The ‘European standard series’ with 27 allergens were performed on the upper backs of patients and healthy volunteers according to international standards using the IQ-Chamber. The test-units which contain these allergens were removed after 2 days. According to International Contact Dermatitis Research Group Recommendations test areas were evaluated on days 2, 3 and 7 to detect any delayed allergic reactions. The results of both groups were compared by using chi-square test. Results: One hundred adult persons (50 BDs and 50 healthy controls) were tested. Positive patch test reaction to 1 or more allergens was observed in 7 (14%) patients in BD group and in 12 (24%) persons in control group. There was no statistically significant difference between these two groups. Conclusions: The frequency of contact sensitivity in BD is not different from healthy persons.

Unusual localization of a common cutaneous neoplasm: basal cell carcinoma.

Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common form of the skin carcinomas and ultraviolet radiation is the major risk factor in the etiopathogenesis. However, reports of unusual sites for BCC are increased in the literature. Authors draw attention to possibility of other etiological agents for BCC like local trauma, ageing, ionizing radiation, arsenic, chronic inflammation, and immune deficiency. Here, we reported a 74-year-old male patient with nodular BCC on groin. We thought that ageing or local trauma may have a role in its formation.

Neonatal Bullous Urticaria Pigmentosa: Case Report

Mastositoz, mast hucrelerinin deri ve diger organlarda anormal infiltrasyonu ile karakterize heterojen bir grup hastaliktir. Kutanoz mastositozun cocuklarda en yaygin formu urtikerya pigmentozadir. Bulloz mastositoz terimi, belirgin ozelligi bul olan mastositozlu olgulari tanimlamak icin kullanilir. Bu tipte sistemik tutulum daha siktir. Tipik lezyonlar ve semptomlar yoksa bulloz mastositoz tanisini koymak her zaman mumkun olmaz ve bulloz impetigo, primer herpes simpleks virus enfeksiyonu, immuno-bulloz hastaliklar, neonatal lupus, incontinentia pigmenti ve eritema multiforme gibi diger bulloz hastaliklar ile karisabilir. Mastositoz tanisi genellikle klinik ve histopatolojik inceleme ile konur. Ek olarak, Tzanck smear gibi basit bir teknikle hizli olarak teshis edilebilir. Burada Tzanck smear ile hizli bir sekilde tani konan, bulloz urtikerya pigmentozali 20 gunluk bir erkek cocuk bildirilmektedir.