Photodynamic therapy (PDT) using topically applied 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) has become a generally accepted treatment modality for superficial malignant skin tumors. However, the costly excimer-dye laser, diode laser and light-emitting diode (LED) frequently used to administrate PDT are impractical to use in most dermatology clinics. This study evaluated the effectiveness of ALA-mediated PDT using a Super Lizer (Tokyo Iken, Tokyo, Japan) equipped with band-pass filters in 38 patients with superficial malignant skin tumors (33 cases of actinic keratosis and five cases of Bowen's disease). Twenty-one cases (18 cases of actinic keratosis and three cases of Bowen's disease) were successfully treated, and the other 17 cases (15 cases of actinic keratosis and two cases of Bowen's disease) showed partial remission after single or repeated administration of PDT. PDT repeated three times at weekly intervals was more effective against actinic keratosis than randomly repeated procedures. The Super Lizer is easy to handle and move, and is less expensive than other known machinery and is useful for PDT in dermatology, especially under the protocol of three times at weekly intervals for the treatment of actinic keratosis.
We investigated the association between the clinical and histopathological classifications of actinic keratosis (AK) and the efficacy of topical imiquimod treatment. Forty patients (55 lesions) with AK were treated with topical 5% imiquimod and the efficacy of imiquimod for AK was evaluated based on the clinical/histopathological changes. The complete remission (CR) rates in patients with the different clinical classifications of AK were 85.4% (erythematous type) and 46.2% (hyperkeratotic type). The CR rates in the different histopathological classifications of AK were 80% (hypertrophic type), 81.8% (atrophic type) and 42.9% (bowenoid type). The results revealed that determining the clinical and histopathological type of AK was important for selecting a therapeutic method. The topical imiquimod treatment could be expected to be more effective for AK clinically classified as the erythematous type, or histopathologically classified as the atrophic or hypertrophic type. However, it would be expected to be less effective for the treatment of AK clinically classified as the hyperkeratotic type or histopathologically classified as the bowenoid type. Our observations suggest that we can predict the efficacy of topical imiquimod therapy in AK by determining its clinical and histopathological type.
ObjectivesRecent studies have revealed the relationship of oxidative stress to various medical disorders, such as cancer and ischemic heart disease. Atopic dermatitis (AD) and psoriasis vulgaris (PV) are chronic inflammatory dermatoses, and oxidative stress is presumed to be involved in the development of these diseases as well as their becoming refractory.MethodsIn this study, we collected urine samples from 40 AD patients, 25 PV patients, and 39 healthy volunteers (HVs). The level of 8‐hydroxy‐2′‐deoxyguanosine (8‐OHdG) in each urine sample was measured and then compared among the groups. We also evaluated the relationship between the AD and PV severity and the urinary 8‐OHdG level.ResultsWe found that the urinary 8‐OHdG level was significantly higher in the AD and PV groups than in the HV group. We did not, however, identify an association between the 8‐OHdG level and the age, disease duration, or disease severity in the AD or PV groups.ConclusionsOur results demonstrated an association between urinary 8‐OHdG and the development of AD and PV, suggesting that both are oxidative stress‐related diseases. Treatments or lifestyle improvements focused on anti‐oxidation may therefore be vital for preventing these chronic dermatoses from developing and becoming refractory.
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