We present the case of a female patient with facial cutaneous lesions, a cobblestone-like pattern of the oral mucosa, and verruciform lesions on the hand since her youth. She reported a history of breast cancer, endometrial cancer, melanoma and multiple benign tumors and cysts. PTEN gene analysis was performed and confirmed Cowden Syndrome, a rare genodermatosis with an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance, characterized by multiple hamartomas. The phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) gene negatively regulates cell proliferation and cell cycle progression. Loss of PTEN function contributes to an increased risk of cancer. We emphasize the importance of early detection and accurate management of Cowden Syndrome.

BACKGROUNDLeprosy is the main infectious cause of disability. It is said to be eradicated in São Paulo since 2005, but diagnosis is still late.OBJECTIVESTo investigate the social, clinical and laboratorial profile of leprosy patients diagnosed between 01/2007 and 12/2011, in a reference center in São Paulo.METHODSRetrospective descriptive study. Data of all new leprosy cases diagnosed between 01/2007 and 12/2011 were raised in São Paulo.RESULTS103 men and 71 women were diagnosed, most of them were multibacillary. Mean age at diagnosis was 49 yrs; 2,2% were children; 70% had incomplete primary education; 50% were referred without diagnostic suspicion of leprosy. Mean time since first symptoms/signs and diagnosis was 2 years; 64% of patients had some degree of disability, and 26% had grade 2. 23 cases were diagnosed only after being summoned, and 80% of these had no disability. Agreement between the Ridley and Jopling and the WHO classification was 75% (kappa index = 0.44). Serology for IgM anti-PGL1 (87 patients) showed a mean value of 0.25, and an association between MB classification and test positivity (p <0.001).CONCLUSIONSLeprosy diagnosis in São Paulo is late. The disease mainly affected the socially disadvantaged and economically active population. Failure to detect the disease (41% in the last 10 years) could be due to the lack of suspicion and to decentralization. For the classification of patients with advanced leprosy, both the WHO and R&J classifications proved to be helpful tools.

Melanoacanthoma is a rare variant of seborrheic keratosis, which is notable for dark pigmentation and fast radial growth, making it difficult to distinguish from melanoma. Histologically, it is characterized by proliferation of keratinocytes and dendritic melanocytes. The authors report a scalp lesion, fast growing, suspected by dermoscopy and confocal microscopy examination, with dendritic cells distributed throughout the lesion. Based on these findings, it was not possible to classify this lesion as clearly benign, so it was excised. Histopathologic evaluation and immunostain were consistent with melanoacanthoma.

Background/Objectives Scalp melanoma is a subgroup of melanomas on the head and neck, historically associated with worst prognosis. Knowledge of the usual presentation of scalp melanoma can help to understand the reasons for the poor outcomes of treatment. This is the first publication to describe the clinical, histopathological and epidemiological profile of patients with scalp melanoma in a Latin American population. Methods A cross-sectional study was performed of all primary cutaneous melanoma seen by the A.C.Camargo Cancer Center between 2008 and 2018, using an electronic health records to access clinical and pathology data. Results When compared to trunk and limbs, increasing age is expected for patients with scalp melanoma (10.865; CI (95%) = [8.303; 13.427]). Regarding risk of invasion, scalp melanomas have a higher chance to be invasive than in situ (OR = 1.783; CI (95%) = [1.196; 2.657]) and present with higher Breslow thickness (OR = 3.005; CI (95%) = [2.507; 3.601]). Scalp site was significantly associated with male sex (OR = 3.750; CI (95%) = [2.533; 5.554]), perineural invasion (OR = 13.739; CI (95%) = [5.919; 31.895]), ulceration (OR = 2.311; CI (95%) = [1.488; 3.588]), and mitosis (OR = 2.366; CI (95%) = [1.701; 3.292]), when compared to trunk and limbs melanoma. Conclusion In the present study, head and neck melanomas represented 14.9% of all melanomas, a frequency slightly lower than that described in the literature and the mean age of melanoma on the scalp found was lower than that reported in the literature. These results could be explained by the demographic characteristics of Brazil, which has a population with a lower life expectancy compared to the European and North American population. Scalp melanomas occurred in older men, were diagnosed with greater Breslow thickness and were associated with the presence of perineural invasion, mitosis and ulceration.

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Background: Mycosis fungoides (MF), a T-cell lymphoma, is the most common variant of primary cutaneous lymphomas. The discrete clinical aspect of the early patch-stage and an overlapping clinical presentation with other erythematosquamous skin diseases make the diagnosis of MF challenging. Histopathology is the gold standard for the diagnosis of MF. However, in early stages, MF can simulate inflammatory diseases, presenting reactive lymphocytes and absence of lymphocytic cytologic atypia. Consecutive biopsies are often necessary from several clinically suspect sites. Previous studies evaluated Reflectance Confocal Microscopy (RCM) as a promising tool for MF diagnosis because it offers the opportunity to analyze skin structures non-invasively at a 'quasi-histopathologic' resolution and to guide the most representative site for biopsy. Case presentation: We present a 76 years-old woman with a 5-year history of erythematous plaques and patches. She had had 5 previous skin biopsies with a pattern suggestive of nummular eczema. The history and the clinical presentation led to the suspicion of MF. RCM examination was performed and two lesions were marked for biopsy. The histopathology exam confirmed the diagnosis of MF. The patient was submitted to topical treatment with total remission of the lesions. Conclusions: The mean time from onset of symptoms to diagnosis is 6 years and the delay in diagnosis results in delay for adequate therapy. Therefore, the selection of the biopsy site is crucial to avoid unrepresentative samples. Mancebo et al. recently published the largest cohort of cutaneous T.cell lymphoma examined with RCM. 83 lesions were evaluated, and the authors confirmed that this image technique was effective in to guide the most representative site for the biopsy. We believe that further and larger studies will clarify it and defining a diagnostic algorithm for the RCM diagnosis of MF.

Delirium is the most common postsurgical neurological complication and has a variable incidence rate. Laparoscopic surgery, when associated with the Trendelenburg position, can cause innumerable physiological changes and increase the risk of neurocognitive changes. The association of general anesthesia with a spinal block allows the use of lower doses of anesthetic agents for anesthesia maintenance and facilitates better control over postoperative pain. Our primary outcome was to assess whether a spinal block influences the incidence of delirium in oncologic patients following laparoscopic surgery in the Trendelenburg position. Our secondary outcome was to analyze whether there were other associated factors. A total of 150 oncologic patients who underwent elective laparoscopic surgeries in the Trendelenburg position were included in this randomized controlled trial. The patients were randomized into 2 groups: the general anesthesia group and the general anesthesia plus spinal block group. Patients were immediately evaluated during the postoperative period and monitored until they were discharged, to rule out the presence of delirium. Delirium occurred in 29 patients in total (22.3%) (general anesthesia group: 30.8%; general anesthesia plus spinal block: 13.8% p = 0.035). Patients who received general anesthesia had a higher risk of delirium than patients who received general anesthesia associated with a spinal block (odds ratio = 3.4; 95% confidence interval: 1.2–9.6; p = 0.020). Spinal block was associated with reduced delirium incidence in oncologic patients who underwent elective laparoscopic surgeries in the Trendelenburg position.