Contact sensitivity and immediate hypersensitivity to extracts from Pityrosporum ovale were studied in patients with atopic dermatitis (AD). In a chamber-scarification patch test, 75 (64%) of 118 patients with AD responded positively, compared with 1 (3%) of 35 healthy volunteers. However, no significant statistical correlations were found between contact sensitivity to P ovale in patients with AD and any of the following factors: age, sex, distribution of skin lesions, presence of pruriginous papules, history of infantile seborrheic dermatitis, or concomitance of other atopic diseases. Lymphocyte transformation test with P ovale antigen confirmed that those with positive patch test reactions showed significantly high stimulation indexes. The antigenic substances divided by gel filtration high-performance liquid chromatography were found in a fraction of components with molecular weights above 60 kd. In addition, 25 (71%) of 35 patients with AD showed a positive immediate response to P ovale extract in a prick test, whereas none of 11 healthy volunteers showed any response. Although the incidence of the positive immediate responses was similar to that in contact sensitivity, there was no clear correlation between the delayed and immediate hypersensitivity reactions. Based on these results, we think that P ovale plays a role as an allergen derived from the host environment in the exacerbation of the skin lesions of AD.
We treated 11 psoriatic patients with topical 1 alpha,24-dihydroxycholecalciferol, a new synthetic analogue of active vitamin D3. In 10 of 15 tests the lesions cleared completely within 1-4 weeks, although some relapses occurred shortly after cessation of treatment. There were no side-effects. We suggest that 1 alpha, 24(OH)2D3 merits further investigation as a potentially useful topical therapy for psoriasis.
vestibular tests were performed in 229 patients who were treated with hemodialysis (H.D.) and the following results were obtained.(1) One hundred and six patients exhibited bilateral hearing loss and 31 showed unilaterally impaired hearing.(2) Vestibular dysfunction was found in 83 patients.(3) Those who were impaired both in the cochlea and the vestibular organ were 60. (4) No correlations were observed between the occurrence rate of the inner ear dysfunction and Hct, BUN and serum creatinine levels. (5) The results in the present study did not suggest the possibility that the hearing loss was progressively getting worse during the period of H.D. therapy.Based on these results, the possible etiological factors in the inner ear dysfunction were discussed. ---------hemodialysis; inner ear dysfunction
We investigated in vitro the contents of epidermal cysts for complement activation and found that they activated complement mainly through the alternative pathway. Chemotactic C5a anaphylatoxin produced by the cyst contents after contact with serum most likely plays a significant role in the initiation and aggravation of inflammation in ruptured epidermal cysts. Our additional study disclosed that components of three representative follicular resident microorganisms (Pityrosporum ovale, Propionibacterium acnes, and Staphylococcus epidermidis) also produced C5a anaphylatoxin mainly through the alternative pathway; the C5a production was more vigorous than that by a virulent pathogen, Staphylococcus aureus. These results suggest that accidental colonization of the cyst contents by these follicular microbial flora further augments the inflammatory changes in ruptured epidermal cysts.
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