Search results for "Integumentary System"
showing 10 items of 744 documents
Prurigo nodularis due to Mycobacterium tuberculosis
2009
Prurigo nodularis (PN) is a rare chronic skin disorder of unknown origin. Here we describe what is believed to be the first case of PN associated with tuberculosis. For the first time, culture and PCR analysis of skin biopsy confirmed the presence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex in PN skin lesions. The pruritus and skin lesions resolved following antitubercular therapy. Our case provides further evidence in favour of a link between PN and mycobacterial infection.
Inhibition of neuropeptide degradation suppresses sweating but increases the area of the axon reflex flare.
2013
The neuropeptides CGRP (calcitonin gene-elated peptide) and substance P (SP) mediate neurogenic inflammation. Both are degraded by the neutral endopeptidase (NEP) which can be blocked by phosphoramidon. The aim was to evaluate the effect of NEP inhibition on sweating and vasodilatation. Dermal microdialysis was performed on the skin of 39 subjects. Two fibres were perfused with phosphoramidon (0.01%, 0.02% or 0.2%), two with saline. Acetylcholine (ACh) was either added to the microdialysis perfusate (n = 30, 10(-2) m) or thermoregulatory sweating was induced (n = 9). Co-application of phosphoramidon reduced cholinergic and thermoregulatory sweating. However, the flare size - a localized in…
Occupational UV-Exposure is a Major Risk Factor for Basal Cell Carcinoma
2017
The aim of this study was to investigate the role of occupational and nonoccupational ultraviolet (UV)-exposure concerning the development of basal cell carcinoma (BCC).We undertook a population-based multicenter case-control study. Patients with first incident BCC (n = 836) were propensity score matched by age and sex to controls without skin cancer (n = 836). Sociodemographic characteristics, clinical characteristics, and lifetime UV-exposure were assessed by trained investigators. The differential estimation of occupational and nonoccupational UV-exposure dosages was based on validated instruments and established reference values. Associations were assessed using multivariable-adjusted c…
Secondary hyperalgesia and perceptual wind-up following intradermal injection of capsaicin in humans.
1998
Wind-up and secondary hyperalgesia both are related to central sensitization, but whereas the former is explained by homosynaptic facilitation, the latter is due to heterosynaptic facilitation. To investigate possible interactions between both types of facilitation, we tested for alterations of perceptual wind-up in the secondary hyperalgesic skin zone adjacent to a capsaicin injection with light touch (by a cotton wisp) and punctate stimuli (calibrated von Frey hairs and pin pricks). Temporal summation of pain sensation (perceptual wind-up) was only observed with a clearly noxious stimulus (pin prick) presented at a repetition frequency of 0.6 s(-1), but not 0.2 s(-1). Pain ratings to trai…
Perceptual correlates of nociceptive long-term potentiation and long-term depression in humans.
2004
Long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) of synaptic strength are ubiquitous mechanisms of synaptic plasticity, but their functional relevance in humans remains obscure. Here we report that a long-term increase in perceived pain to electrical test stimuli was induced by high-frequency electrical stimulation (HFS) (5 × 1 sec at 100 Hz) of peptidergic cutaneous afferents (27% above baseline, undiminished for >3 hr). In contrast, a long-term decrease in perceived pain (27% below baseline, undiminished for 1 hr) was induced by low-frequency stimulation (LFS) (17 min at 1 Hz). Pain testing with punctate mechanical probes (200 μm diameter) in skin adjacent to the HFS–LFS con…
Modality-specific sensory changes in humans after the induction of long-term potentiation (LTP) in cutaneous nociceptive pathways.
2007
The impact of long-term potentiation (LTP) in nociceptive pathways on somatosensory perception was examined by means of quantitative sensory testing (QST) in the ventral forearm of 12 healthy human subjects. Electrical high-frequency stimulation of the forearm skin (HFS; 5 x 1 s at 100 Hz and 10 x detection threshold) led to an abrupt increase of pain to single electrical test stimuli, which were applied through the same electrode (perceptual LTP +72%, p0.01). Perceptual LTP outlasted the 1-h observation period. The effects of HFS on somatosensory perception of natural test stimuli in the conditioned skin area were restricted to mechanical submodalities. Subjects exhibited a significant dec…
Effects of the NMDA-receptor antagonist ketamine on perceptual correlates of long-term potentiation within the nociceptive system
2007
We recently reported perceptual correlates of long-term potentiation (LTP) of synaptic strength within the nociceptive system demonstrating the functional relevance of LTP for human pain sensation. LTP is generally classified as NMDA-receptor dependent or independent. Here we show that low doses of the NMDA-receptor antagonist ketamine (0.25 mg/kg) prevented the long-term increase in perceived pain to electrical test stimuli, which was induced by high-frequency electrical stimulation (HFS) of nociceptive afferents. Whereas in a control experiment HFS led to a stable increase in perceived pain by 51% for the entire observation period of 1 h HFS given 4 min after i.v. ketamine was ineffective…
The pattern and time course of somatosensory changes in the human UVB sunburn model reveal the presence of peripheral and central sensitization.
2013
The ultraviolet B (UVB) sunburn model was characterized with a comprehensive battery of quantitative sensory testing (QST). Primary hyperalgesia in UVB-irradiated skin and secondary hyperalgesia in adjacent nonirradiated skin were studied in 22 healthy subjects 24h after irradiation with UVB at 3-fold minimal erythema dose of a skin area 5 cm in diameter at the thigh and compared to mirror-image contralateral control areas. The time course of hyperalgesia over 96 h was studied in a subgroup of 12 subjects. Within the sunburn area, cold hyperesthesia (P=.01), profound generalized hyperalgesia to heat (P.001), cold (P.05), pinprick and pressure (P.001), and mild dynamic mechanical allodynia (…
Increased acetylcholine levels in skin biopsies of patients with atopic dermatitis.
2003
Recent experimental evidence indicates that non-neuronal acetylcholine is involved in the regulation of basic cell functions. Here we investigated the cholinergic system in the skin of healthy volunteers and patients with atopic dermatitis (AD). The synthesizing enzyme, choline-acetyltransferase (ChAT), was studied by anti-ChAT immunohistochemistry and enzyme assay. Skin biopsies taken from healthy volunteers and from AD patients were separated into the 2 mm superfical (epidermis and upper dermis) and 3 mm underlying portion (deeper dermis and subcutis). ChAT enzyme activity was detected in homogenized skin and subcutaneous fat (about 13 nmol/mg protein/h). ChAT immunoreactivity was express…
Histopathological findings in oral lichen planus and their correlation with the clinical manifestations
2010
Objectives: To highlight the most characteristic histopathological findings of oral lichen planus and their correlation with the clinical manifestations and forms. Study design: We performed a retrospective study of 50 biopsied and diagnosed cases of oral lichen planus obtained over a period of 11 years, spanning from May 1998 to April 2009. We analyzed the age and sex of the patient, type of lichen planus, location and different histopathological findings, comparing them with the clinical lesions. Results: Seventy eight percent of the patients are female and 22% are male, with an average age of 56.06 years for both sexes. The most frequent clinical form is reticular, present in 78% of the …