The GEA Scale is a global scale validated both on photographs and acne patients which can be used either in clinical research or by the dermatologist in his office.

Vitiligo has a major impact on health-related quality of life (QOL). Although a few vitiligo specific QOL instruments exist, there is no specific vitiligo burden tool. We developed and validated a specific vitiligo burden tool according to skin phototype. In total, 301patients completed 35-item of the Vitiligo Impact Patient scale (VIPs) of who 235 were of skin phototype I to III and 66 of phototype IV to VI. The dimensionality of the items was evaluated using factor analyses with results suggesting 3 factors in fair and dark skinned patients ("Psychological effects on daily life", "Relationships and Sexuality", and "Economic constraints, Care & Management of Disease"). Unidimensionality was confirmed by higher order factor analysis. Cronbach's α were high and intra-dimensional coherences all demonstrated good reliability (α>0.8). The final instrument consists of 29 items (19 items common to all patients, 3 specific to fair skin and 7 to dark skin. The test-retest reliability demonstrated very good reproducibility. Intra Class Correlation of each dimension was >0.90 for each population. External validity was confirmed by the correlation coefficients and Bland and Altman plots of the VIPs-FS and VIPs-DS versus the SF-12, PVC Metra, BISS and DLQI assessment tools.Journal of Investigative Dermatology accepted article preview online, 08 October 2015. doi:10.1038/jid.2015.398.

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Background: The role of heredity in acne severity and therapeutic response remains unclear. Objective: A prospective epidemiologic study was performed to compare clinical and evolutive features of acne and response to treatment in 151 patients with acne with (A+) or without (A–) family history of acne. Methods: A+ and A– patients were compared on clinical and therapeutic criteria. A+ patients were then distributed into subgroups (M+, F+, M+F+) following the origin of family history (father: F, mother: M). Results: The clinical profile was similar in the A+ and A– populations. Acne occurred earlier and more often before puberty in the A+ population, in which oral treatments and relapse after isotretinoin were more frequent. Retentional lesions (number and extent) were more important in the M+ and M+F+ populations. Conclusion: This study confirms the importance of heredity as a prognostic factor for acne. Family history of acne is associated with earlier occurrence of acne, increased number of retentional lesions and therapeutic difficulties.

Summary Background  Until now, segmental vitiligo has been considered as a stable entity and mixed vitiligo, the association of segmental and nonsegmental vitiligo, has been reported rarely. Objectives  The aim of this study was to search for factors associated with the generalization of vitiligo in patients with segmental vitiligo. Patients and methods  This was a prospective observational study conducted in the vitiligo clinic of the Department of Dermatology of Bordeaux, France. The Vitiligo European Task Force questionnaire was completed for each patient attending the clinic with a confirmed diagnosis of segmental vitiligo after exclusion of other forms of vitiligo (focal, mucosal, not classifiable.) Thyroid function and antithyroid antibodies were screened if not obtained in the previous year. Results  One hundred and twenty‐seven patients were recruited: 101 had segmental vitiligo and 26 had segmental vitiligo that evolved into mixed vitiligo; 56 were male and 71 were female. Most patients had onset of segmental vitiligo before the age of 18. When conducting multivariate analysis, we found the following to be independent factors associated with the evolution of patients’ disease from segmental vitiligo to mixed vitiligo: initial percentage of body surface involvement of the segment > 1% [odds ratio (OR) 15·14, P = 0·002], the presence of halo naevi (OR 24·82, P = 0·0001) and leukotrichia (OR 25·73, P = 0·0009). Conclusions  Halo naevi association and leukotrichia at first consultation in segmental vitiligo are risk factors for the progression of segmental vitiligo to mixed vitiligo. In addition, this progression of segmental vitiligo to mixed vitiligo carries a stronger link if initial segmental involvement is situated on the trunk.

Pre-pubertal onset vitiligo is strongly associated with personal and family history of atopy, suggesting that the predisposing immune background in vitiligo is not limited to autoimmunity, as also noted in alopecia areata. This study also suggests reconsidering the epidemiological data on sex ratio in vitiligo.

To investigate the potential role of CMV in cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), we studied cytomegalovirus (CMV) seroprevalence in parapsoriasis (PP), mycosis fungoides (MF) and Sézary syndrome (SS) compared with healthy control patients. In cases where CMV seropositivity was observed, CMV PCR analyses were performed on skin biopsies. CMV seroprevalence was 37.1% in the control group, 50.68% in the PP + MF + SS group (P = 0.08), 56.2% in the MF + SS group (P = 0.07), 40% in the PP group (P = 0.9), 66.67% in the MF group (P = 0.009), 42.86% in the SS group (P = 0.9). CMV PCR in initial skin biopsies were all negative. However, PCR CMV was positive in two SS skin biopsies realized at an advanced stage. Our results show that latent CMV infection may play a role in the susceptibility of MF in predisposed subjects by inducing T-cell proliferation and resistance to apoptosis. Concerning SS, an immunosuppressive state may be responsible for CMV reactivation that in turn may interfere with evolution of the disease.

Non-segmental vitiligo (NSV) is an enigmatic disease with various clinical courses. To empirically identify underlying subtypes of NSV, we performed latent class analysis (LCA) of 717 consecutive patients with NSV seen between 2006 and 2012 and were analyzed. Median age was 32 yrs (14-45), median age at NSV onset was 18 yrs (8-32), and median NSV duration 5 yrs (0.75-78.5). A two-class model showed the best fit. Of the 717 patients, 280 (39%) belonged to LC1 and 437 (61%) to LC2. LC1 patients had high probabilities for early disease onset (<12 yrs), halo nevi, family history of premature hair greying, Koebner phenomenon, previous episodes of repigmentation, and family history of vitiligo. By contrast, LC2 patients were characterized by a late disease onset (after or at the age of 12 yrs, median age of 30 yrs) and acrofacial localization without any lesions on trunk or limbs. These two LCA classes (LC1, 'prepubertal onset'; LC2, 'post-pubertal onset') may help refining results from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and allow a more accurate genotype-phenotype correlation and help defining more directed treatment protocols.