1/5. Striae and acne following cardiac surgery in a child.We report a 13-year-old girl with extensive striae and an acneiform eruption following surgery for complex congenital heart disease. These findings were associated with elevated serum and urinary cortisol levels with loss of diurnal rhythm. The resolution of the eruption and the fading of her striae coincided in time with normalization of her blood parameters on day 72 postoperatively. We conclude that the cause of steroid excess in our patient was stress induced by the cardiac surgery and a complicated and protracted postoperative course. To our knowledge, this is the first report in the English language literature of skin changes due to endogenous hypercortisolaemia caused by intense physical and emotional stress.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physical (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/5. Extraspinal enthesopathy caused by isotretinoin therapy.OBJECTIVE: To discuss a case of diffuse peripheral enthesopathy in a patient previously treated with long-term isotretinoin (Accutane) for severe acne. CLINICAL FEATURES: A 47-year old man with 1 month history of moderate neck and right upper extremity pain, with hypoesthesia of the right second and third fingers. Palpable bony prominences around multiple superficial joints were noted on physical examination, raising the initial question of osteochondromatosis. Multiple active acne pustules were noted. A limited skeletal survey demonstrated diffuse peripheral enthesophyte formation and hyperostoses, resembling those of diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis, but without accompanying spinal changes. A history of long-term Accutane therapy was then elicited. INTERVENTION AND OUTCOME: The enthesopathy was believed to represent an asymptomatic, longstanding, iatrogenically induced abnormality. No specific therapy or follow-up was indicated. The patient had discontinued use of Accutane years ago. Cervical symptoms improved with four sessions of cervical traction and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications, but upper extremity symptoms were refractory. CONCLUSION: Accutane-induced enthesopathy should be considered in individuals with correlating radiologic and clinical features and history of retinoic acid therapy for acne. This should be a diagnosis by exclusion, after eliminating other potential causes of peripheral enthesopathy, particularly diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis, seronegative spondylarthropathy, and fluorosis.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physical (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/5. Greater trochanter enthesopathy: an example of "short course retinoid enthesopathy": a case report.Irreversible skeletal changes have been described in patients with dermatologic disorders treated with isotretinoin (Accutane), a synthetic vitamin a derivative. Although retinoids were developed to avoid toxicity associated with vitamin a, skeletal lesions and rheumatologic consequences are possible hazards of isotretinoin treatment. Enthesopathy is one of the potential musculoskeletal sequelae and is characterized by pathologic, sometimes painful changes at the insertion sites (entheses) of tendons, ligaments, and articular capsules into bone. We report a patient who was referred secondary to an extended history of bilateral hip region pain. She was subsequently found to have a greater trochanteric enthesopathy. A detailed patient history revealed past use of Accutane for cystic acne. The subsequent treatment course, including medications, corticosteroid injections, physical therapy, and activity modifications, is described and the pertinent literature is reviewed. We believe that patients who are prescribed isotretinoin should be warned about this potential pathologic condition at the initiation of treatment and that physicians who are treating patients with a history of Accutane use should be suspicious of underlying enthesopathies as the etiology behind pain of musculoskeletal origin.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physical (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/5. Acne arthralgia.A syndrome of arthralgia associated with one form of acne is described. Orthopaedic surgeons should be alert to the association of profound arthralgia and myalgia with this particular variant of acne vulgaris. Thirteen patients are described, all of whom are adolescent boys with a chronic moderately active acne which suddenly became extremely aggressive and toxic. The symptoms and signs included proximal arthralgia and myalgia, fever, elevated sedimentation rate, and altered immunoglobulins. Control of acne and conservative physical therapy resulted in complete resolution of the musculoskeletal complaints.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physical (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/5. Mild cutaneous manifestation in two young women with extraordinary hyperandrogenemia.hyperandrogenism with hyperandrogenemia should be considered in those with severe acne of sudden onset or conspicuous male-pattern baldness with hairline recession, although the majority of female patients with acne or androgenetic alopecia possess no endocrine disorder. Herein we describe on the contrary 2 young women with primary amenorrhea displaying prominent hyperandrogenemia but subtle cutaneous manifestation. The first one presenting vertical alopecia had an elevated level of serum dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (>800 microg/dl) and was suspected to be a case of late-onset, non-classical adrenal hyperplasia. The second case with mild acne had a soaring serum level of total testosterone >9,000 ng/dl derived from an androgen-secreting adrenal adenoma overexpressing steroidogenic acute regulatory protein, P450 side-chain cleavage enzyme and aromatase. A careful patient history and a complete physical examination are mandatory in each individual female case with acne or alopecia. The possibility of adrenal tumor should be explored in patients with escalated circulating testosterone.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physical (Clic here for more details about this article) |