BACKGROUND: For the diagnoais of atopic dermatitis(AD) an array of basic and minor clinical features proposed by Hanifin and Rajka were in common use. However, there have been some disputes in the diagnostic significance of minor clinical features of AD due to ethni. differences, variance in definitions, materisls and methods, OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the dignostic significance of total 38 minor clinical features of AD in Korean children. Most of them wefe roposed by some authors in the literature and the remainder by ourselves based on our clinical experienes. METHODS: The frequency of these features was studied in 48 patieni s with typical AD compared to that in 89 control subjects. The age of all studied individuals ranged from 2 to 12 years. RESULTS: Thirteen of these was including xerosis, perifollicular acccntuation, frontal lichenification, anterior neck folds, eyelid eczema, Dennie-Morgan folds, auricular fiss are/eczema, pityriasis alba, vertral wrist eczema, infragluteal eczema, sandpaper-like skin lesion of yelbow/knee/lateral malleolus, white dermographism, and scalp scaling were shown to be of mueh diag nostic significance(P<0,001). CONCLUSION: We propose that above-mentioned 13 monor features may be a valuable guideline for the large scale field survey on the incidence and prevalence of AD in Korea children.
Child ; Dermatitis, Atopic* ; Dissent and Disputes ; Eczema ; Eyelids ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea* ; Neck ; Pityriasis ; Prevalence ; Scalp ; Skin ; Wrist

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have shown an incomplete agreement with the previously proposed diagnostic criteria of Hanifin and Rajka for atopic dermatitis(AD). This could be due to ethnic differences in the clinical manifestations of AD. To make a diagnosis of AD with confidence, one has to depend on the history and clinical picture according to race. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the present study was to find out the importance of individual symptoms and histories for the diagnosis of Korean AD by questionnaire. METHODS: The frequency of 25 questionnaire items was studied in 130 patients with typical AD (48 childhood, 82 adolescence/adult) compared to that in 198 control subjects (89 childhood, 109 adolescence/adult). RESULTS: Nine items(itchy with bodily heat, itchy when sweating, cholinergic urticaria, miliaria, irritation with fabrics, food reaction, pollen allergy, itch with stress) were shown to be of much diagnostic significance(p<0.001) in childhood AD,otherwise thirteen items(itchy with bodily heat, itchy when sweating, cholinergic urticaria, sense of fever, excessive sweating, miliaria, irritation with cosmetics, irritation with fabrics, irritation prone hands, itchy with woolen clothes, pollen allergy, itch with stress, dermographism) were in adolescent and adult, AD. CONCLUSION: We found some diagnostic significance of clinical histories in Korean AD patients by questionnaire. We propose that this accessible questionnaire would be an efficient and powerful method with which to obtain new and valid information on AD.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Continental Population Groups ; Dermatitis, Atopic* ; Diagnosis ; Fever ; Hand ; Hot Temperature ; Humans ; Miliaria ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal ; Sweat ; Sweating ; Urticaria

BACKGROUND: Three age-depedent clinical phases(infantile, childhood and adult phase) of atopic dermatitis(AD) were recognized. We think that for t he diagnosis of AD there seems to be some differences in minor clinical features of diagnosic significance according to each phase, yet only a few studies about them. OBJECTIVES: The purprrse of the present study was to evalute the diagnostic significance of total 39 minor clinical features of AD in Korean adolescenc and adult popluation, all but only skin were proposed by our previous study for Korean children. METHODS: The frequeney of 39 minor clinical features wistudied in 82 patients with typical AD compared to that in 109 control subjects. The age all studied individuals ranged from 13 to 42 years. Furthermore, some characteristic micro features of AD in them were compared with those from our previous study for Korean children. RESULTS: Twenty-seven minor features including xerosis, peifolhcular accentuation, frontal lichenification, anterior neck folds, eyelid eczema, Dennie-Mogan folds, auricular fissure/eczema, pityriasis alba, ventiral wrist eczema, infragluteal eczcm, sandpaper-like skin lesions on elbow/knee/lateral malleblus, white dermographism, scalaling, Hertoghes sign, orbital darkening, cheilitis, facial erythema/pallor, hyperlinear paln, ichthyosiform skin lesions, nipple eczema, nummular eczema, pompholyx, itchy hyperker totic lesions of dorsal hands, knuckle dermatitis of hands, hangnail, non-specific hand/foot dermatitis, chronic dermatophytosis were shown to be of much diagnostic signiic, nce(P<0.001). CONCLUSION: We think tiat 13 minor features such as Hert piges sign, cheilitis, facial erythe- mapallor, hyperlinear ichthyosiform skin lesions, ripile eczema, nummular eczema, pompholyx, itchy hyperkpratotic lesions of dorsal hands, kzukle dermatitis of hands, hangnail, non-specific hand/foot dermatitis, chronic dermato h tosis are specific for Korean adolescence and adult population with AD. Taken together, to propose that these 13 minor features be added to a gardeline for the large scale field sirvy on the incidence and prevalence of AD in the Korea adolescence and adult population.
Adolescent* ; Adult* ; Cheilitis ; Child ; Dermatitis ; Dermatitis, Atopic* ; Diagnosis ; Eczema ; Eczema, Dyshidrotic ; Eyelids ; Hand ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea* ; Neck ; Nipples ; Orbit ; Pityriasis ; Prevalence ; Skin ; Tinea ; Wrist

Human sparganosis is not uncommon and over 60 cases are reported in Korea but the case infested with multiple spargana is rare. The case we are reporting here is a 33 year-old Korean male having had an abscess and several bean-sized nodules on the left thigh. The patient had the history of eating frogs as a tonic food 3 years ago. Five spargana were removed from the lesions by surgical excision. Two of them were alive and other three were degenerated or calcified.
Abscess ; Adult ; Eating ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Sparganosis* ; Thigh

We report herein a case of transient acantholytic dermatosis. The patient was a 24-year-old pregnant woman in the last trimester, who had pruritic, discrete, erythematous or brownish papules on the lateral aspect of the neck. Histopathologic findings of the skin lesion showed changes resembling Darier's disease showing well circumseribed, small foci of acantholysis with acantholytic and dyskeratotic cells over the suprahasal clefts. The patient showed good response to isotretinoin(Roaccutane) therapy, 20mg/day, for 30 days.
Acantholysis ; Darier Disease ; Female ; Humans ; Neck ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Trimester, Third ; Pregnant Women ; Skin ; Skin Diseases* ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND: The incidence of atopic of atopic dermatitis (AD) varies widely by different ages and it has been well-founded that the epidemiology of AD has been studied on admission of the first grade schoolchildren. AD is a common skin disease of childhood and tends to increase significantly during recent decades, but informations regarding the exact prevalence of AD, based on the large-scale general population study, are unavailable in korea. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to elucidate the exact prevalence of AD and to evaluate the diagnostic significance of some well-known minor clinical features associated with AD in the first grade school children in one of Kouean cities, Puchon, kyunggi-do. METHODS: Four thousands and eighteen first grde school children (boys ; 2072, girls ; 1946) participated inthis study. Two dermatologists determined the presence of skin lesions by through skin examination. Diagnosis of AD was made only when typical flexural and/or extensor and/or infraauricular fissure/eczema exist. The frequency as well as their diagnostic significance of ten minor features of AD (xerosis, ichthyosiform skin lesion, hyperlinear palm,)keratosis pilaris, non-specific hand/foot dermatitis, cheilitis, nipple eczema, perifollicular accentuation, pityriasis alba, Dennie-Morgan infraorbital fold) thought suitable items for field survey by authors, were also evaluated. RESULTS: The total prevalence of AD in the first grade school children of Puchon city was 3. 78%. The prevalence in boys was 3.37% and that in girls was 4.2 Associated minor features in individuals diagnosed as having AD were, in order of frequency, pityriasis alba (59.8%), perifollicular accentuation (57.8%), , keratosis pilaris (56.5%), hyperlinear palms (55.2%), xerosis (43.3%), Dennie-Morgan infraorbital fold (26.3%), etc. All but the ichthyosiform skin lesions and nipple eczema were significantly more frequent in individuals diagnosed as having AD (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: A relatively low prevalence shown in this study might be due to rather strict diagnostic criteria. Some helpful and diagnostically significant minor clinical features of AD, suitable for field survy, is suggested. Further studies are needed for accurate estimation of the prevalence of AD in korea including different regional and age population.
Cheilitis ; Child ; Dermatitis ; Dermatitis, Atopic* ; Diagnosis ; Eczema ; Epidemiology ; Female ; Gyeonggi-do ; Humans ; Incidence ; Keratosis ; Korea ; Nipples ; Pityriasis ; Prevalence* ; Skin ; Skin Diseases

Demodex is easily found from eyelashes and suggested as the one of the causes of some eye diseases. This study was to investigate the occurence rate, and classification of Demodex from eyelashes, and its relationship with blepharitis. The data of this study were compiled from 27 blepharitis patients and 173 patients without blepharitis (control group) who had visited St. Paul's Hospital from October 1981 to December 1981. Three eyelashes from each eyelid-total 12 lashes from a patient-were extracted under the slit lamp, located on a slide glass and fixed with polyvinyl lactophenol mounting medium. (countinued..)
Blepharitis ; Classification ; Eye Diseases ; Eyelashes* ; Glass ; Humans ; Polyvinyls

We present a case of onychogryphosis of both great toe nails associated with onychomycosis of all toe nails occurring in a 90-year-old female patient. She also had senile dementia. Affected nail plates were thickened, increased in length, and curved like the horn of a ram. The nail plates were removed surgically form the nail bed. Direct microscopic examination revealed many hyphae with potassium hydroxide. Trichophyton rnbrum was isolated from the culture in Sabouraud glucose agar media. On histopathologic examination, we found many hyphae in the nail plate. We suggest an onychomycosis as one of the causes of onychogryphosis.
Agar ; Aged, 80 and over ; Alzheimer Disease ; Animals ; Female ; Glucose ; Horns ; Humans ; Hyphae ; Onychomycosis* ; Potassium ; Toes ; Trichophyton

Neonatal lupus erytematosus is a distinct subset of lupus erythematosus. It is characterized by cutaneous findings exhibiting the morphology of subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus, congenital heart block, and anti-Ro/SSA and/or anti-La/SSB autoantibodies which result from the transplacental passage of maternal autoantibodies. We report a case of a 12-week-old female infant who presented with characteristic clinical and histopathological features of cutaneous neonatal lupus erythematosus but without evidence of congenital heart block. Initial serological studies reveled the presence of anti-La/SSB anti-bodies and antinuclear antibodies. 5 months later, follow-up serology was negative in accordance with a clinical remission.
Antibodies, Antinuclear ; Autoantibodies ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Heart Block ; Humans ; Infant ; Lupus Erythematosus, Cutaneous

We report a case of Dirty Neck in a 27-year-old male suffering from severe atopic dermatitis. 'Dirty Neck', a reticulate pigmentation of the anterior and anterolateral aspects of the neck, is a specific finding in some subjects with atopic dermatitis. Two groups have been indentified. One is found in older patients with severe atopic dermatitis whose pigmentary lesions develop after puberty and show little seasonal variation. The other is found in younger patients with mild eczema who have a increase in pigment during the summer. Our patient showed a dark brown colored, linear, reticulate pigmentation of the neck, especially anterolateral aspeet regarded as the former group. More comprehensive and detailed clinical study is needed to evaluate the importanee of this entity in regard to as a minor clinical feature of Korean atopic dermatitis.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Dermatitis, Atopic ; Eczema ; Humans ; Male ; Neck ; Pigmentation ; Puberty ; Seasons