BACKGROUND: The elastic fiber network undergoes profound alterations during the ageing process. OBJECTIVE: Our study compared two type ageing process of elastic fiber; the first, age associated, is found in skin from a nonexposed area; the second, related to sun exposure, is found in an exposed area. METHODS: In order to differentiate these two forms of ageing process, the author tried to compare length, breadth, perimeter, shape factor and amount of elastic fiber between the exposed and nonexposed skin of 240 Korean men using computerized digital image analysis system. RESULTS: Amount and breadth of elastic fibers are significantly different between exposed and nonexposed area in the same age group. After the fifties, the length of each elastic fiber in exposed areas are significantly longer than those of nonexposed area. Breadth is more sensitive than length to photoageing. The amount of elastic fiber is variable in nonexposed areas but increased steadily according to age in exposed areas. CONCLUSION: The amount and four morphological factors of elastic fiber show there are significant differences between photoageing and chronological ageing process.
Elastic Tissue* ; Humans* ; Male ; Skin* ; Solar System

BACKGROUND: The confgurations of the skin surface, as characterized by surface furrows and plateaux, are known to change with ageing. There are many parameters to analyze the effects of ageing processes on the surface configuration. However, there are contradictory results among the authors. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to compare the sensitivity of various parameters being described in other reports with our new parameters used in evaluating the changes of the skin surface in the agein processes. METHODS: 112 healthy Korean males in 4 age groups participated in this study. Silicon skin replicas were taken from medial and lateral aspects of the forearm. Images of the skin replicas were analyzed by means of a digital image processing system (AIC, GA). Most parameters were calculated and measured in the primary skin axis. Image analyses were porformed by 3 different processes i.e., morphometry, densitometry (optical profilometry), and histograms. RESULTS: In Morphometry, the furrow count in the vertical section (VFC), the coefficient of the developed skin surface (CDSS) and mean width at maximal interception (MWMI) showed a tendencies to decrease with ageing.Irregularity of shadow shape (ISS) showed a tendency to increase with ageing. In Densitometry, the mean surface roughness(Ra) and mean depth of roughness(Rz) showed a tendency to increase with ageing. On histogram analysis, skewness was decreased with ageing but kurtosis did not show any significant changes. CONCLUSION:Ra, Rz, and ISS have shown a tendency to increase in the ageing processes (p<0. 05). VFC, CDSS, MWMI and skewness showed tendencies to decrease with ageing but the results were not statistically significant. The different results between morphometry and densitometry are likely to be due to increrr ent angles in the skin furrows with ageing.
Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Densitometry ; Forearm ; Humans ; Male ; Silicones ; Skin*

BACKGROUND: Nucleolar organizer regions(NORs) are loops of DNA that transcribe ribosomal RNA; they can be easily identified in paraffin section using silver method. Recently, the application of NORs to the study of various types of benign and malignant proliferation has suggested that the number of NORs per nucleus can provide an indication of degree of cellur maligriancy. Many authors indicated a significant overlapping of NORs counts between benign and malignant proliferation. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to discriminate benign m laocytic nevi from malignant melanoma effectively, thus we use simple enumeration and computerized image analysis of AgNORs in melanocytic skin lesions. METHOD: NORs were investigated on silver stained histologicec ion of 18 malignant melanoma (MM), 19 acquired nevi(AN), 21 congenital nevi(CN). For each case, 100 nucleus sample were cuantified using image analysis system(AIC Inc., Roswell, GA). There is no consensus at present as to the best criterion for quantifying AgNORs proteins in melanocytic skin lesion. We prefer to quantify a large number of parameters. The mean value or standard deviation(SD), each calculated for a batch of 100 cells, are average again(mean+SD), over the 58 cases for six morphological criteria mean number of AgNORs per nucleu, mean ratio of AgNORs area per ruc eus area, mean area of largest AgNORs, mean ratio of largest AgNORs area per nucleus area, mean nucleus area per a AgNOR, and coefficient of variation of nucleus area. RESULTS: 1. All of the six parameters show significant difference between benign melanocytic nevi and malignant melanoma. But., there is no significant difference between acquired nevi and congenital nevi. 2. In stepwise discriminate analysis, we discriminate benign melanoctic nevi from malignant melanoma effectively using combined two parameters(number of AgNORs and mean ratio of AgNORs area per nucleus area). But there is some overlapping between malignant melanoma and ber ign melanocytic nevi using each six parameters. 3. In metastatic and non-metastatic malignant melanoma, six param ters have not shown significant difference. CONCLUSION: Study of AgNORs in the image analysis system is a very useful tool to differentiate malignant melanoma from benign melanocytic nevi.
Consensus ; DNA ; Melanoma ; Nevus ; Nevus, Pigmented ; Nucleolus Organizer Region ; Paraffin ; RNA, Ribosomal ; Silver ; Skin*

We present a case of desmoplastic trichoepithelioma in a 21-year-old woman. She had a asymptomatic hard annular plaque with a raised border and depresaed center on the chin. Histopathological findings showed narrow strands of basaloid cell, keratinous cyst and desmoplastic stroma, the features corresponding to the desmoplaslic trichoepithelioma.
Chin ; Female ; Humans ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND: With the development of medical science and technology, the proprotion of the aged has been significantly increasecl. Therefore it needs to be studied the fuadamental epidemiologic survey of dermatologic diseases and akin care in the elderly. OBJECT: Our purpose was to provide clinically relevant data regaring both dermatologic diseases and skin care in the aged population. MEHTODS: Total 172 volunteers aged 51 to 90 were enrolled in a study of 32-item questionnaire and total cutaneous examination. RESULTS: The sex ratio of male to female of 172 elderly volunteers as 1:1.4 and population of 7th and 8th decades occupied 76.5% with their mean age 74.4. The dermatologic findings which showed higher incidence in this study were seborrheic keratosis, senile lentigines, xerosis, cherry angioma, and generalized pruritus. Through the interviews of 172 elderly, the mot fequent dermatologic complaint was generalized pruritus. As the mean age of the population increasec, the number of the population showing xerosis and complaing of pruritus was elevated(r=0.976. 0.917 respectively). And there was a significant stastical correlation between the finding of xerosis and the the presence of pruritus(P<0.005). CONCLUSION: This study suggests that dermatologic problems in the elilerly are very common ancl further dermatologic studies including substantial medical care will be needed.
Aged ; Epidemiology ; Female ; Hemangioma ; Humans ; Incidence ; Keratosis, Seborrheic ; Lentigo ; Male ; Prunus ; Pruritus ; Sex Ratio ; Skin Care* ; Skin Diseases* ; Skin* ; Volunteers

BACKGROUND: The principle of Mohs micrographic surgery is to examine microscopically the entire peripheral margin of an excised tissue specimen to precisely localize the site of any residual tumor and enable its subsequent removal. In processing in the tissue for frozen horizontal sections, a technical difficulty arises in manipulating the deep and lateral margins into the same flat plane. OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to develop a new method allowing the optimal tissue preperation for Mohs micrographic smgery and to evaluate the usefulness of this methad. METHODS: The technique involves conversion of a non-planar surgical margin to a planar surface by applying and freezing the specimen against a flat glass surface. We compared this modified method used in our laboratory with standard methods for tissue preparation of Mohs micrographic surgery.
Freezing ; Glass ; Mohs Surgery ; Neoplasm, Residual

No abstract available.
Skin Diseases, Vesiculobullous*

Romberg syndrome is a rare disease and characterized by unilaeril atrophy of the skin, subcutaneous tissue and the underlying structure of half the face. The lesion does not usually cross the midline of the scalp. Roriberg syndrome is sometimes mildsnosed as linear scleroderma, although they differ widely in their clinical and histological apperance. A 13-year-old boy was present with a one year history of idefined atrophic patch on the left side of face and neck. We involved skin was not bound down to the underlying structure. The history revealed no prcvious trauma or disease, He had no abnormal neurologic finding. Computerized tomography demonstrated a diminished subcutaneouat volume and also decreased thickness of back muscle is the left side face from cheek to neck.
Adolescent ; Atrophy ; Back Muscles ; Cheek ; Humans ; Male ; Neck ; Neurologic Manifestations ; Rare Diseases ; Scalp ; Scleroderma, Localized ; Skin ; Subcutaneous Tissue

No abstract available.
Dermatitis, Atopic* ; Humans ; Mothers*

Trichost.asis Spinulosa consists of several fasciles of reta ned vellus hairs in the hyperkeratotic sebaceous follicles, resulting in a dark slightly raied horny follicular spines, resembling comedones on the trunk and face. The condition is relatively common, particulary among the age, but is usually overlooked on routine skin examination as the patient is rarely aware of it.. We report 6 cases of trichostasis spinulosa, which showed numerous asymptomatic tiny black comedo-like dots on their backs. We obtained the follicular material by tweezer, which consised of several vellus hairs surrounded by a keratinous plug. Histologic examination was done in 3 patients, one of whom showed a rarely reproted double follicle and double papilla. With scanning electron microscopy, we observed multiple vellu hairs embedded in a keratotic plug, emerging from a hair follicle opening.
Hair ; Hair Follicle ; Humans ; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning ; Skin ; Spine