In this single-institution case series, 14 patients with a history of psoriasis presented to the emergency department with generalized papulosquamous eruption following COVID-19 vaccination in the first five months of 2021. Nine of the patients had a history of mild psoriasis and were not on treatment, and the remaining five were treated with topical therapy. The mean time from vaccination to rash onset was 10.36 days. The psoriasis flares were treated with systemic therapy or phototherapy in nine cases and topical medications in five cases. Half of the patients were vaccinated with mRNA vaccines and the other half were vaccinated with the adenovirus vaccine.
The authors suggest that psoriasis patients should be advised to receive the COVID-19 vaccine and contact their health care provider in case of disease flare.
What’s coming down the psoriasis pipeline? Find out in DermWorld.
DermWorld Insights and Inquiries: Is ivermectin an old drug with new tricks?
Most of us are familiar with the use of oral ivermectin in the setting of treating extensive or resistant scabetic or lice infestations, or more rarely (in the United States but very commonly globally) for conditions such as cutaneous larva migrans, onchocerciasis, filariasis, myiasis, and strongyloides. Topical ivermectin formulations may be used for head pediculosis or rosacea. When used in these conditions with appropriate dosing, ivermectin is considered a safe, well-tolerated medication.
Imagine my (and perhaps yours as well) surprise to find ivermectin making headlines in our national news for the past few weeks as the newest unproven treatment for COVID-19 infection. Keep reading!
Frontal fibrosing alopecia and facial care products
A study published in The Journal of Dermatology sought to investigate whether there may be an association between the use of facial care products and frontal fibrosing alopecia (FFA) in Asian females. The authors sent a survey to 50 FFA patients, 100 pattern hair loss patients, and 100 controls, inquiring about their use of facial care products and hair care practices. The use of facial moisturizer was significantly higher in the FFA group than in the control group (78% vs. 40%), and the use of sunscreen was significantly higher in the pattern hair loss group than in the control group (72% vs. 35%).
Subjects in the FFA and pattern hair loss groups reported more frequent use of both sunscreen and moisturizer compared with normal controls. The authors suggest, however, that the use of facial care products, particularly moisturizer and sunscreen, may not be truly associated with FFA. The increased rate of facial care product use in patients diagnosed with hair disorders may not be linked to the disease mechanism of FFA, but rather to appearance-related concerns of patients.
What has the research revealed about the pathogenesis of various hair disorders? Find out in DermWorld.
On Sept. 9 President Biden announced that the requirement that all nursing home employees be vaccinated will expand to cover staff at any facility that accepts payment from Medicare or Medicaid, a category that is likely to affect dermatologists and their staff members who work for hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers. President Biden also announced that any business with more than 100 employees will have to require those employees to either be vaccinated for COVID-19 or be tested weekly, a rule that will affect some larger dermatology group practices. Learn more about federal and state rules.
Do hormones, reproduction play a role in incident rosacea?
A recent study published in JAAD found that the risk of rosacea is higher with menopausal hormone therapy and oral contraceptives, and is lower in postmenopausal women and women who have given birth more than once.
[Experts reexamine rosacea's classification system inDermWorld.]
In a retrospective analysis, the authors used data from nearly 90,000 white women to investigate the association of reproductive and hormonal factors with rosacea. They identified 5,248 incident rosacea cases during follow up. The onset of rosacea was less common in premenopausal women compared with postmenopausal women (hazard ratio, 0.73). The risk of rosacea increased with menopausal hormone therapy, (hazard ratio, 1.32), longer duration of menopausal hormone therapy (hazard ratio, 1.78 for 10 years or more), and oral contraceptives (hazard ratio, 1.15). There was an inverse association between the number of births and the risk of incident rosacea. Women aged 30 years or older at first birth had a greater risk of incident rosacea.
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