History & Terminology
Pellagra: how did it come to stand from clinical changes to vitamin deficiency ?
Friday, November 14th, 2014The words of origin are: pellis (Latin) = skin aegre (Latin) = sick, diseased …or… aγρa (Greek) = affection, condition This condition can be summarized by the 4 d’s: dermatitis diarrhea dementia death The skin is characterized by the following: photosensitivity of exposed areas erythema accompanied sometimes by skin sloughing, followed by pigmentation and lichenification […]
Terminology: Piezogenic Pedal Papules
Friday, November 14th, 2014The Greek word of origin is: πιεζειν = piezein = to press The term in English is: PPPP (Painful Pedal Piezogenic Papules) …was described in 1968 by 2 US dermatologists: Drs Walter B. Shelley (1917-2009 and Rawnsley. This condition is mechanical in origin and rarely painful, It is caused by the herniation of fat tissue. […]
Localized non-scarring alopecia: What is Ophiasis ?
Friday, November 14th, 2014The Greek word of origin is: οφις = ophis = snake This term is used when alopecia areata affects the occipital and parietal areas of the scalp. When the alopecic plaques are horizontal, and that they merge together, they appear as a sinuous line which reminds us of a snake. This type tends to extend […]
Blenorrhea or Gonorrhea ?
Friday, November 14th, 2014The Greek word of origin is: βλέννα = blenna = mucus, purulent mucus ρεîν = rein = to flow More precisely, this word is used to describe a purulent discharge which can be localized to the eyes, urethra or any other opening or aperture. If referring to a urethral discharge, it is better to use […]
Oral steroids in dermatology: the story behind it
Tuesday, November 11th, 2014The use of steroids in dermatology was initiated by two American New-York based dermatologists: Drs Marion Sulzberger and Victor Witten. Oral steroids: results of orally administered cortisone acetate were published in the Archives of Dermatology (now JAMA Dermatology) in 1951 and served the following purposes: “1. to get over the hump for an inflammatory dermatosis” […]
What did Dr Hutchinson describe ?
Tuesday, November 11th, 2014Teeth deformities in congenital syphilis ? Yes, Hutchinson’s as well as the triad of signs he considered pathognomic: notched teeth, 8th nerve deafness, interstitial keratitis. Lentigo Maligna ? Yes, called Hutchinson’s melanotic freckle (HMF) by Australian dermatologists. A sign of nail melanoma ? Yes, called Hutchinson’s sign (when pigment is present on the proximal nail […]
Mentorship in dermatology – the pioneers
Tuesday, November 11th, 2014France was where a lot of the building of modern dermatology was made. Baron JL Alibert was of high importance in the development of education in dermatology. 3 times a week he conducted rounds in what was to become the first great dermatologic teaching centre: Hopital Saint-Louis. Reminiscent of the fundamental role of the hospital […]
Leprosy: why it is called Hansen’s disease
Tuesday, November 11th, 2014Leprosy was an important health problem in Norway and in the mid 19th century a center for the study and care of leprosy patients was built in the outskirts of Bergen (called the Pleiestiftelsen). It was built by Dr Daniel Cornelius Danielsen (1815-1894), the founder of leprosy research – he described crusted scabies – also […]
Fox-Fordyce disease: do not mix it up with Fordyce ONLY !
Tuesday, November 11th, 2014Fox-Fordyce disease is also known as apocrine miliaria: It appears as papules in apocrine gland bearing areas such as the axillae, the pubic areas and around the areolae. It is due to a chronic obstruction of the apocrine glands It was described by Dr George Henry Fox (1846-1937), an American dermatologist from New York Dr […]
Confluent and Reticulate Papillomatosis: Who described it ?
Tuesday, November 11th, 2014This syndrome is also called Gougerot-Carteaud and was described in 1927 by two French dermatologists: Drs Gougerot and Carteaud. Dr Henri Gougerot (1881-1955) also described: the Gougerot-Houwer-Sjogrens syndrome also simply known as Sjorgren’s syndrome the Gougerot-Reiter syndrome also simply known as Reiter’s syndrome. pigmented purpuric lichenoid dermatoses of Gougerot and Blum Dr Gougerot was an […]
