Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

J Chevrant-Breton

Publications and source records attributed to J Chevrant-Breton.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

[Positive photobiological investigation in Jessner's lymphocytic infiltration of the skin].

BACKGROUND: Jessner's lymphocytic infiltration of the skin is a rare and benign disorder. Its clinical course is cyclic with remissions and exacerbations. In this disease, photosensitivity was previously noticed by authors and recently demonstrated. We report four new cases with positive photobiological investigation. CASE REPORTS: Four patients (2 males, 2 females), with a mean age 36 years were seen with erythematous papules or discoid plaques on face, arms and upper trunk. The onset of disease occurred after sun exposure in summer. Skin biopsies showed perivascular lymphocytic infiltration in the dermis. All patients relapsed cyclically with incomplete healing during winter. Photobiological investigation elicited skin lesions in a broad spectrum of UV: UVB (2 cases), UVA (1 case), UVA and UVB (1 case). In all patients treatment with oral antimalarials and external photoprotection was effective. DISCUSSION: Our data suggest that photosensitivity history in patients with Jessner's lymphocytic infiltration of the skin should be searched for, and confirmed by provocative phototesting. This relevant event could guide the therapeutic strategy because antimalarials were effective for the Jessner's lymphocytic infiltration cases with photosensitivity.

Adult↗

[Pruritus].

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Diagnosis, Differential↗

Delays in diagnosis and melanoma prognosis (II): the role of doctors.

A prospective survey was conducted to assess physician responsibility in melanoma prognosis. Consecutive patients with primary melanoma were interviewed and examined using a standardized questionnaire. Main outcome measures were medical components of the delay before tumor resection and tumor thickness. Of 590 melanomas, 29.1% were coincidentally detected by physicians and their tumor depth was lower than in melanomas detected by patients (p < 0.001). Physician sensitivity for melanoma diagnosis was evaluated at 86%. Median time intervals to propose resection and to perform removal of melanoma were short: 0 (mean 103) and 7 (mean 68) days, respectively. Melanomas were managed in an inappropriate way in 14.2% of cases. Location on acral areas and absence of pigmentation were associated with longer medical delays and more frequent inappropriate medical attitudes. Melanomas located on hardly visible areas were less frequently detected by physicians than those on visible areas. Medical delays were shorter, doctor's attitude was more frequently appropriate, and melanoma thickness was lower (p < 0.001) when the patient visited a dermatologist (54.7%) than when he or she visited a general practitioner (33.4%). Our study shows that doctor responsibility accounts for only a small part of the total delay before melanoma removal. However, systematic total examination and better training of doctors, especially about unusual forms of melanoma, could still improve melanoma detection.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

Delays in diagnosis and melanoma prognosis (I): the role of patients.

A prospective survey was conducted to assess the role of patients in the melanoma prognosis. Consecutive patients with primary melanoma were interviewed and examined using a comprehensive questionnaire including a psychological instrument. Main outcome measures were the delay before medical intervention and the tumor thickness. Of 590 melanomas, 70.8% were detected by patients and this proportion was higher in females. Relatives were involved in the detection of half of the cases. Median delays before the patient realized he had a suspicious lesion, before this lesion was seen by a doctor, and before the melanoma was removed were 4 months, 2 months, and 1 week, respectively. Delays up to several years were observed in some cases. The rate of self-detection tended to be lower, the delays before seeking medical advice to be longer, and the tumor thickness to be higher in old people, in males, in lower-educated individuals, in those living out of towns, and in people with a low awareness about melanocytic tumors than in other cases. Conversely, individuals with a high number of atypical nevi, those who were aware to be at risk, and those who regularly visited a dermatologist tended to detect their melanoma more rapidly. No specific psychological traits were associated with a late reaction, although negligence and anxiety tended to prolong the delays. Knowledge about melanoma was poor in many patients, especially in males, and wrong beliefs were widespread. This study provides the targets of future education programs.

Adolescent↗

[Serum S100B protein and stage of cutaneous melanoma: a prospective study].

OBJECTIVE: We searched for a correlation between serum S100B protein and cutaneous malignant melanoma stage, according to the American Joint Committee on Cancer staging system, and between elevation of serum S100B protein and development of metastasis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We conducted a prospective bicentric study for 20 months in 122 patients with malignant melanoma. LIA-mat(R) assay was used to determine serum S100B at each examination. The optimal cut-off value was determined from the ROC curve. RESULTS: The optimal cut-off value to discriminate patients with metastases from patients in remission was 0.09 microg/l. Sensitivity was 46 p. 100 in patients with stage III and 86 p. 100 in patients with stage IV disease. The positive predictive value for stage III/IV was 77 p. 100 and the negative predictive value was 89 p. 100. Serial measurements were made in 56 patients. The serum S100B protein level was elevated in 69 p. 100 of the patients disclosing disease progression (9/13). In 44 p. 100 of the patients (4/9), serum S100B protein level rose within a delay of 3 months before new metastases were detected. DISCUSSION: Our study confirms that serum S100B protein is a tumor marker for melanoma staging and follow-up. A rise in S100B protein precedes or reveals metastasis.

Adult↗

[Melanoma in organ transplant patients].

OBJECTIVE: The incidence of cutaneous melanoma has rapidly increased in the white population over the last decades. It has been estimated that the incidence doubles world-wide every 10 years. Different risk factors have been identified, including immunosuppression. The aim of our study-was to determine the relative risk of developing melanoma in the organ transplant population and the clinical and histological features of their melanomas. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This retrospective study was conducted with the collaboration of 9 University Hospital Centers: Besançon, Brest, Caen, Dijon, Lille, Lyon, Nantes, Paris (Pitié-Salpétrière) and Rennes. A questionnaire was sent to the different departments of dermatology of these hospitals to obtain information on patients who had presented a melanoma after a transplantation between 1971 and 1997. During this period, there were 12,477 organ transplant recipients in the transplantation units of these 9 hospitals. Average follow-up for these patients was about 5 years and the average duration of immunosuppressive therapy was about 4.5 years. RESULTS: Among 12,477 organ transplant recipients, we found 17 cases of melanoma but no data could be obtain on one case: 14 occurred in renal transplant recipients and 3 in cardiac transplant recipients. Clinical and histological data were only available in 16 patients. The average time between transplantation and diagnosis of melanoma was 63 months, but it was 5 times shorter for 2 patients who had a past history of melanoma before transplantation. Two patients had a mucosal melanoma; for the cutaneous melanomas, 2 appeared on Dubreuilh melanosis, 2 were in situ melanomas, 7 were superficial spreading melanomas and 3 were nodular melanomas. The histological review of 11 cutaneous melanomas revealed a precursor nevus in 6 cases and a weak or no stroma reaction in 7/7 cases. Complete excision of the melanoma was performed in all patients except one with anorectal melanoma. Four patients died of visceral metastasis within a mean 15 months. The other 12 patients are still alive with a mean 3 year course since tumor treatment. We tried to determine the relative risk of developing melanoma in the renal transplant population (14 cases). The number of expected cases of melanoma was 5.54, giving a relative risk of 2.5. DISCUSSION: Only 4 studies have shown an increase in the incidence of melanoma in the renal transplant population: approximately 2 to 5-fold. In our study, the 2.5-fold increase in melanoma was estimated with an average 5 year follow-up and an average 5 year immunosuppressive therapy. This is probably an underestimation of risk because we were unable to make an exhaustive collection of cases of melanomas even though transplant recipients undergo more physical examinations than a reference population. The mean latency period from transplantation to melanoma diagnosis was 63 months, as in other studies. Histological examination showed that a precursor nevus is frequent with weak host cellular response to the tumor. The prognosis of these melanomas remains difficult to predict, but in our study, it would not appear to be as poor as expected. Discontinuation of immunosuppressive therapy would not appear to be necessary except in the presence of metastasis. Finally, our study demonstrates the importance of good patient follow-up, even after graft rejection due to the persistent risk of melanoma.

Adult↗

[Human orf and erythema multiforme].

BACKGROUND: Orf is a disease of sheep due to a parapoxvirus. Transmission in man is possible, and is generally benign, self-limited condition. Although, rare complications have been mentioned. We report a case of Orf with erythema multiforme in a young girl. CASE REPORT: A 13-year-old girl presented to our department with an erythema multiform. The cutaneous examination revealed painless erythematous nodule of her right index finger developed 15 days after a contact with a lamb. The diagnosis of Orf complicated by erythema multiforme was made on the basis of her typical history. Lesions heal with symptomatic therapy in 15 days. DISCUSSION: Orf presents in sheeps as a pustular dermatitis or a vesicular oral mucosal lesions, and in man as a single lesion on the site of infection. This lesion generally heals without complications, although secondary infection is not uncommon. Twenty one cases of erythema multiforme have been recorded following infection with the Orf virus. In typical cases, the diagnosis is established by a history of contact with infected animals and the appearance of the lesion. Electron microscopic examination can be helpful sometimes. Lesions regress in 4 to 5 weeks without specific treatment.

Child↗

Melanoma and tumor thickness: challenges of early diagnosis.

OBJECTIVE: To test the basic assumption of campaigns for early diagnosis of melanoma, ie, prognosis is correlated with the delay in the diagnosis. DESIGN: Prospective study of the correlation between delays to diagnosis, assessed using a questionnaire, and the Breslow thickness as a prognosis marker. SETTING: Dermatology departments in France. PATIENTS: Five hundred ninety consecutive patients, referred within 12 weeks after resection of cutaneous melanoma. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Assessment of 5 successive time intervals from the first time the patients realized that they had a lesion until the resection of the melanoma, and results of the correlation between each time interval and tumor thickness (Breslow). RESULTS: There is a positive but weak correlation between tumor thickness and the delay to identify a lesion as suspicious (r = 0.17; P = .009). However, this delay tends to be short for the thickest tumors. There is a negative correlation between tumor thickness and the delay to seek medical attention (r = -0.20; P<.001). This delay was shorter for nodular melanoma. No correlation is found between melanoma thickness and physicians' delays. CONCLUSIONS: Poor prognosis can be accounted for by aggressive rapidly growing tumors rather than by delays. In well-informed populations, campaigns for early diagnosis of melanoma may thus no longer have a major impact on prognosis, unless they are focused on subgroups less accessible to information and medical care.

Female↗

Recurring atypical ("pseudosarcomatous") cutaneous fibrous histiocytoma.

Atypical ("pseudosarcomatous"), cutaneous, fibrous histiocytoma is a rare connective tissue tumor arising on the trunk and limbs in young adults. Its histological diagnosis is difficult. We report the case of a 25-year-old woman who presented a nodule on her left leg. Two years after an incomplete excision, she developed a large local recurrence. Additional radiotherapy, after total reexcision was performed. This treatment was successful and no further recurrence occurred. Clinicopathological features of atypical ("pseudosarcomatous"), cutaneous, fibrous histiocytoma are reviewed. Differential diagnoses, including atypical fibroxanthoma, angiomatoid fibrous malignant histiocytoma and aneurysmal fibrous histiocytoma are discussed.

Adult↗

Computed tomography guided thoracic sympatholysis for palmar hyperhidrosis.

METHODS: Sixteen patients (mean age 26.3 years; range 18-38) with palmar hyperhidrosis underwent 29 sympatholyses after unsuccessful medical, and in 8 ionophoresis, treatments. Sympatholysis was performed under local anesthesia with computed tomographic guidance. After opacification of the injection site at T3 with Iopamiron 200, phenolization was performed with 10 ml 6% phenol. RESULTS: Good immediate results evaluated on the basis of venous dilatation, and dryness and warmth of the skin were obtained in 23 cases (80%). There were 6 immediately unsuccessful procedures in 4 patients. At 20 months, good results, assessed on the basis of objective criteria and subjective patient self-evaluation were obtained in 22 cases (75% including immediate failures). Computed tomography guided thoracic sympatholysis performed under local anesthesia is an effective treatment for palmar hyperhidrosis. Morbidity is low and hospital stay is short. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that thoracic sympatholysis should be indicated as the first intention procedure when surgery is required in patients with palmar hyperhidrosis.

Adolescent↗

[Eccrine syringofibroadenoma. Report of a case].

Eccrine syringofibroadenoma is an uncommon benign adnexal tumor (about thirty reported cases). Its clinical presentation is variable and non specific. The diagnostic is never evident before histological exam. Histologically it is an epithelial proliferation organized in thin cords appended to the epidermis with cuticular differentiation. Eccrine poroma and fibroepithelial tumor of Pinkus are the main histological diagnostic problems. The authors report two new cases in two women of 35 and 69 years which had been clinically considered as histiocytofibroma and molluscum pendulum.

Adenoma, Sweat Gland↗

[Multifocal angioeccrine hamartoma associated with venous insufficiency].

INTRODUCTION: Angioeccrine hamartoma is an uncommon skin disease. The typical aspect is that of a sometimes painful hemangioma often associated with localized hypersudation. There is almost always only one lesion, generally with a distal localization. Angioeccrine hamartoma usually occurs in childhood but neonatal and adult forms have been described. CASE REPORT: We observed a case of plurifocal angioeccrine hamartoma on the lower left limb in a 55-year-old man with homolateral venous insufficiency. DISCUSSION: The plurifocal nature of the lesions and the association with venous insufficiency in the same territory would suggest that vascular disorders would be an underlying factor, especially since treatment of the venous disorder lead to initial improvement in the skin manifestations.

Diagnosis, Differential↗

[Multiple pilomatricoma. Apropos of a case].

Pilomatricoma is a benign, solitary tumor. The histopathologic findings of viable basaloid cells in the periphery, shadow cells in the central part and foci of calcification are characteristic of pilomatricoma. The microscopic aspect of multiple pilomatricomas was not different from solitary pilomatricomas. Though, some consider them as a pathognomonic sign of myotonic dystrophy. Complete surgical excision is the best management.

Child, Preschool↗

[Calcified intertrigo, a rare cause of cutaneous calcinosis].

INTRODUCTION: Calcinosis cutis is classically described in patients presenting chronic renal failure with secondary hyperparathyroidism. There are three clinical types described in the literature: cutaneous necrosis (secondary to vascular calcification), panniculitis with calcification of the adipose tissue and necrosis of the skin and dermo-hypodermic calcinosis without necrosis usually called metastatic calcinosis. The latter can affect all tissues but skin involvement is rare. CASE REPORT: A case of calcinosis cutis is presented in a 50 years old woman with moderate secondary hyperparathyroidism and chronic renal failure caused by renal amyloidosis. She was referred by the renal unit to our service for erythematous, woody-hard, infiltrated plaques with petechial purpura satellite lesions, involving the flexural areas, that appeared within a few weeks. DISCUSSION: This observation is original by the topography of the cutaneous lesions the involvement of the fexural areas is unusual and by the histologic aspect of pseudoxanthome elastic-like. We must notice that the hyperparathyroidism had always been very moderate (normal parathormonemia) compared to the rapid development of an important dermic calcinosis.

Aged↗

[Hair dysplasia in oculo-dento-digital syndrome. Apropos of a mother-daughter case].

Oculo-dento-digital syndrome (SODD) as defined by Meyer-Schwickerath in 1957 is a rare entity (84 cases) which belongs to ectodermal dysplasias. It consists of: the characteristic features (long face, pinched nose); syndactyly; ocular, dental and bone abnormalities. This entity is usually transmitted on the autosomal dominant mode. We report two cases (a mother and daughter) with polymalformations which we classed as SODD. Furthermore, agenesis of lacrimal duct and genitourinary abnormalities were noted. The mother had a very particular complex hair shaft dysplasia (incomplete pili torti, "tiger tail" aspect, fractures) with alopecia since she was fifteen years old. The daughter's hair was normal at birth. In SODD, fine and sparse hair is often observed (44 p. 100). Only one patient had hair shaft investigation under polarized light: pili annulati and monilethrix were described but not found in our cases. These two reports incite to the systematic hair shaft study in SODD as other ectodermal dysplasia syndromes.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗