BACKGROUND: The incidence of skin diseases in the university hospital may not truely indicate their province in the population, nevertheless it offers the only available source of information.Objective and Method: To study the prevalence of common dermatoses and compare this with previous reports, we reviewed 20, 000 new outpatients who visited the Department of Dermatology at Wonju Christian Hospital from 2000 to 2004, and have statistically analyzed the findings. RESULTS: The study results are summarized as follows: 1. Of the 20, 000 outpatients, the total number of male patients was 9, 871 (49.4%), and the numbers of female patients was 10, 129 (50.6%). 2. As for age distribution, the most frequent age group was the first decade (15.3%), fifth decade (15.1%), fourth decade (13.9%) and sixth decade (13.7%), comprising 58% of the total outpatients. 3. The 19 most common dermatoses were found to be dermatophytosis, atopic dermatitis, allergic contact dermatitis, other eczema, urticaria, alopecia, herpes zoster, seborrheic dermatitis, psoriasis, bacterial infection, pruritus, drug eruption, vitiligo, acne, verruca, irritant contact dermatitis, benign epidermal tumors, nevocellular nevus and hyperpigmentary disorders. 4. Those dermatoses which showed a decreasing tendency to be treated by medicine included allergic contact dermatitis, other eczema, bacterial infections, acne, and irritant contact dermatitis. An increasing tendency was noted in dermatophytosis, urticaria, alopecia, herpes zoster, seborrheic dermatitis, psoriasis, pruritus, drug eruption, vitiligo, verruca, benign epidermal tumors and nevocellular nevus. There was no significant annual difference in incidences of hyperpigmentory disorders compared to atopic dermatitis. 5. Diseases with high seasonal distribution in summer were dermatophytosis and verruca. However, atopic dermatitis, alopecia, herpes zoster and pruritus showed high incidence in the winter period. Acne showed a peak incidence in both summer and winter. 6. As for gender distribution, dermatophytosis, alopecia, seborrheic dermatitis, bacterial infection and vitiligo showed a high frequency in males, whereas allergic contact dermatitis, urticaria, herpes zoster, psoriasis, pruritus, drug eruption, acne, epidermal benign tumors, nevocellular nevus and hyperpigmentary disorders showed a high freguency in female. 7. In age distribution, atopic dermatitis, bacterial infection, vitiligo, verruca and nevocellular nevus were found to be the most frequent in the first decade, and acne and alopecia in the second decade. Urticaria and psoriasis were most frequent in the third decade; dermatophytoses, allergic contact dermatitis, irritant contact dermatitis and hyperpigmentary disorders in the fifth decade; other eczema, seborrheic dermatitis and pruritus in the sixth decade; herpes zoster and drug eruption in the seventh decade; and epidermal benign tumors in the eighth decade. 8. In the distribution of dermatoses as disease groups, eczema (25.5%), diseases of the skin appendages (10.8%), dermatophytosis (10.0%), erythema, urticaria and drug eruption(10.2%), viral infections (8.4%), papulosquamous disease (4.1%), and pruritus and neurocutaneous disease (3.9%) constituted 72.5% of the total. CONCLUSION: The distribution of skin disease in our hospital was similar to studies wnducted in other provinces. Comparing the alone results with earlier studies carried out in the same area by Lee (3), Won (2) and Song (1), there was a relatively low incidence of dermatoses caused by animal parasites. However, a predominently high incidence of age related dermatoses was found.
Acne Vulgaris ; Age Distribution ; Alopecia ; Animals ; Bacterial Infections ; Dermatitis, Allergic Contact ; Dermatitis, Atopic ; Dermatitis, Contact ; Dermatitis, Seborrheic ; Dermatology ; Drug Eruptions ; Eczema ; Epidemiology ; Erythema ; Female ; Gangwon-do ; Herpes Zoster ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Music ; Nevus ; Outpatients ; Parasites ; Prevalence ; Pruritus ; Psoriasis ; Seasons ; Skin ; Skin Diseases* ; Statistics as Topic* ; Tinea ; Urticaria ; Vitiligo ; Warts

No abstract available.
Acupuncture* ; Metals*

The sign of Leser-Trelat refers to the sudden appearance and rapid increase in size and number of seborrheic keratosis. It is considered to be a sign of internal malignant tumors. A 60-year-old male who had received chemotherapy for bladder cancer showed multiple rice to bean-sized dark brownish papules on the scalp and trunk. Skin lesions had suddenly appeared 4 months ago, and he had been diagnosed with transitional cell carcinoma of bladder cancer. The lesions had rapidly increased in number and size. The histopathologic finding of the skin lesions revealed seborrheic keratosis.
Carcinoma, Transitional Cell ; Drug Therapy ; Humans ; Keratosis, Seborrheic ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Scalp ; Skin ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms* ; Urinary Bladder*

Tethered cord syndrome is a kind of spinal dysraphism with low-lying conus frequently associated with intraspinal lipoma, diastematomelia or fibrous band. The clinical manifestations varies from long periods of no overt symptoms to back pain, scoliosis, progressive neurological deficit of legs and incontinence. Therefore the diagnosis requires a strong clinical suspicion and aggressive investigation. It shows various cutaneous manifestations including hyperpigmentation, skin dimple, dermal sinus or hypertrichosis. This 34-year-old female patient has had a lozenge shaped hair tuft with terminal hair on the lumbosacral area since her birth. Her MRI scan showed dermal sinus and a low-lying conus at the lower border of L5. The filum terminale was also thickened. These findings are compatible for tethered cord syndrome.
Adult ; Back Pain ; Cauda Equina ; Conus Snail ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Hair ; Humans ; Hyperpigmentation ; Hypertrichosis ; Leg ; Lipoma ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Neural Tube Defects* ; Parturition ; Scoliosis ; Skin ; Spina Bifida Occulta ; Spinal Dysraphism

A 7 year-old boy visited our hospital with a 2 week history of inflammatory, pustular, tender patches and plaques on the right scalp and face area. He had been treated with topical steroid and antibiotics in a private clinic. In a KOH smear mount, multiple hyphaes and spores appeared on stratum corneum of the outer root sheath layer of his hair. The diagnosis of kerion celsi induced by dermatophytes was made. The patient was treated with oral griseofulvin, and on the 2nd day after starting treatment, multiple erythematous and tendered subcutaneous nodules occurred on his shin. A photosensitive dermatitis like lesion also occurred on his periorbital area. Griseofulvin changed to terbinafine. On the 6th day after treatment, the skin lesions on his face and scalp had improved, as had his shin lesions. The interest of this case lies in the unusual association of kerion and erythema nodosum, of which only eleven cases have been reported in dermatologic literature, and all cases were kerion induced Trichophyton species.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Arthrodermataceae ; Child* ; Dermatitis ; Diagnosis ; Erythema Nodosum* ; Erythema* ; Griseofulvin ; Hair ; Humans ; Hyphae ; Male ; Scalp ; Skin ; Spores ; Tinea Capitis* ; Trichophyton

Angiolipomas are subcutaneous tumors composed of a mixture of adipocytes and blood vessels. The tumor resembles lipomas clinically, but develops in young adults, and favored sites for this tumor are the arms and the trunk. They are usually multiple, often painful or tender and tend to be small. There have been 4 reported cases of angiolipoma in Korea. But they are mostly few, small and tend to be limited in trunk or upper extremities. Then we report a case that the total number of the masses is over 100 and multiple isolated masses up to 12cm in size were found on the whole body. The treatment with triamcinolone intralesional injection in the only one mass showed partial response but the other trial with enoxaparin didn't.
Adipocytes ; Angiolipoma* ; Arm ; Blood Vessels ; Enoxaparin ; Humans ; Injections, Intralesional ; Korea ; Lipoma ; Triamcinolone ; Upper Extremity ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND: The pathogenesis of melasma has not yet been clearly demonstrated. But, clinical manifestations such as remarkable lesional symmetry and the distribution related to trigeminal nerves, suggest that the neural system could play a pathogenic role in melasma. OBJECTIVE: This study was carried out to examine the expression of some neuropeptides and their receptors, which are well known to be major contributors of neuroinflammation in many dermatoses, in melasma lesions. METHODS: Skin biopsies were obtained from the lesional and non-lesional facial skin of 6 Korean women with melasma. Immunofluorecence staining and confocal laser scanning microscopy were performed. RESULTS: In our results, no difference could be detected with regard to the intensity of immunoreactivity for vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), calcitonin gene-related peptide receptor (CGRPR), substance P (SP), substance P receptor (SPR), somatostatin (SOM), pituitary adenylate cyclase activating peptide (PACAP) and pituitary adenylate cyclase activating peptide receptor (PACAPR) in the lesional skins compared with the non-lesional skins. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that neuroinflammation induced by neuropeptides such as substance P, calcitonin gene-related peptide, vasoactive intestinal peptide, and somatostatin and their receptors included in this study, are not directly associated with melasma pathogenesis.
Adenylyl Cyclases ; Biopsy ; Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide ; Female ; Humans ; Melanosis ; Microscopy, Confocal ; Neuropeptides ; Receptors, Neurokinin-1 ; Receptors, Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide ; Skin ; Skin Diseases ; Somatostatin ; Substance P ; Trigeminal Nerve ; Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide

A 9-year-old girl presented with fever, conjunctival injection, desquamation following erythema and edema of the fingers and toes, strawberry tongue, polymorphous rash and cervical lymphadenopathy. She showed palpable purpura on the lower extremities after 7 days of the onset of the above symptoms. She showed typical Henoch-Schonlein purpura concurrent with Kawasaki disease. There is no known report of a case of Henoch-Schonlein purpura concurrent with Kawasaki disease and evaluation of the same pathogenesis of the two diseases. We've got a clue from the facts that human parvovirus B19 could develope both of the diseases. But Human parvovirus B19 PCR was negative. We, herein, report an unusual case of Henoch-Schonlein purpura concurrent with Kawasaki disease.
Child ; Edema ; Erythema ; Exanthema ; Female ; Fever ; Fingers ; Fragaria ; Humans ; Lower Extremity ; Lymphatic Diseases ; Mucocutaneous Lymph Node Syndrome* ; Parvovirus B19, Human ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Purpura ; Purpura, Schoenlein-Henoch* ; Toes ; Tongue

Dermatofibroma is a small, firm, red to purple-brown colored dome-shaped or flat papule or nodule, occurring more commonly in women. Majority of dermatofibromas are solitary, but multiple lesions can sometimes occur. The etiology is unclear, but an association with various immunosuppressed conditions has been proposed. We report a case of multiple eruptive dermatofibromas on the lower extremities in a patient with AIDS.
Female ; Histiocytoma, Benign Fibrous* ; Humans ; Lower Extremity

BACKGROUND: Although there are no known gender-related differences in permeability barrier function in adults, estrogen accelerates whereas testosterone retards barrier development in fetal skin. However, there have been few studies concerning the effects of testosterone on the skin barrier. OBJECT: We evaluated the effects and mechanisms of testosterone on the skin barrier. METHODS: In this experiment, hairless mice were divided into three groups; sham-operated, castrated and testosterone-replacement castrated group. Testosterone was administered subcutaneously once a day for 7 days. We performed a skin biopsy at 7 days and performed hematoxyline-eosin staining, calcium-ion capture cytometry and the immunohistochemical examination of involucrin, loricrin, filaggrin and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA). The specimens were prepared for electron microscopy using RuO4 and OsO4 postfixation. RESULTS: The results were summarized as follows 1. Light microscopic findings of the testosterone-replacement castrated group showed apparent hyperkeratosis and acanthosis, not present in the sham-operated and castrated group. 2. Whereas the expression of involucrin, loricrin and filaggrin of immunohistochemical staining and in situ hybridization of the sham-operated and castrated group were normal, it was abnormal in the testosterone-replacement castrated group. 3. Labelling indices for PCNA in the sham-operated and castrated group were not statistically different, but the testosterone-replacement castrated group showed a marked increase of PCNA labeling index. 4. Wherease the calcium gradient was normal in the sham-operated and castrated group, it was distorted in the testosterone-replacement castrated group. Calcium deposition was increased through all layers of the epidermis and the calcium gradient disappeared in the testosterone-replacement castrated group. 5. Normal looking membrane structure was observed in the sham-operated and castrated group, but a membrane structure which appeared fragmented, incomplete lipid bilayer structures and prominent dilatation of lacunar domains were observed only in the testosterone-replacement castrated group. CONCLUSION: From the above results, it is concluded that there is a functional alteration of the epidermal barrier induced by testosterone, including the formation of an abnormal cornified envelope and also incomplete lipid synthesis.
Adult ; Animals ; Biopsy ; Calcium ; Dilatation ; Epidermis ; Estrogens ; Humans ; In Situ Hybridization ; Lipid Bilayers ; Membranes ; Mice ; Mice, Hairless ; Microscopy, Electron ; Permeability ; Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen ; Skin* ; Testosterone*