[Assessment of the frequency of all kinds of cutaneous wants in school age male students in Behshahr in 2003-2004]

Warts are benign epidermal lesions, caused by human papilloma viruses [HPVs]. These lesions occur in different body surfaces with different shapes, and they are sometimes predisposing factors for some kinds of malignancies. Determining the frequency of all kinds of cutaneous warts of male students of primary, guidance and high schools in Behshahr in 2003-2004 was the main objective of the study. In the descriptive study, 1200 male students of primary, guidance and high schools between 7 to 18 years of age were randomly allocated and divided into 3 groups each with 400 students. Subjects of each group were examined by a dermatologist, according to valid clinical and were collected in questionnaires and were analyzed using descriptive statistical tests and SPSS software. Our study showed the total frequency of warts to be 10.4%. They were most common in students of high school with 12.3%. One hundred and nineteen cases were common wart, 20 plantar, 5 flat, 4 filiform and 1 was anogenital wart. Epidemiological studies can play a basic role in interventional health therapeutic studies in society for reduction of incidence, morbidity, and mortality of dermatological diseases, followed by improvement of society health

[Prevalence of skin disorders in Sari, 2003-2004]

Skin disorders are the most common presenting health problems. According to dermatological researches, only scant studies estimated the prevalence of skin diseases in the general population. This study was performed to assess the prevalence of skin diseases in Sari, Mazandaran, North of Iran. This retrospective study was carried out on all of the patients referred to Boo-Ali Sina hospital in Sari, 2003-2004. All data such as diagnosis of skin problem, age, sex, marital status and job were recorded. Diagnosis were classified according to the international classification of diseases [ICD-10]. Results were analyzed with descriptive statistics using SPSS software. A total of 4460 patients with mean age of 28.01 +/- 16.2 years including 1807 [40.45] men and 2653 [59.7%] women were studied. Most of the patients [33.4%] referred in summer. The most common observed skin disease was appendices disorders [24%] the most common of which acne [55.8%] and androgenic alopecia [30%]. The second common problem was infections [23.3%] and dermatitis [19.8%] was the third. Irritant contact dermatitis [82.7%] was the most common form of dermatitis. We found that prevalence and distribution of skin disorders in the study area are different from those of other parts of Iran. More studies are needed to identify common skin disorders in Iran

[Fish tank granuloma in a 16 year-old male; a case report]

Fish tank or swimming granuloma caused by Mycobacterium marinum is an opportunist pathogen commonly found in aquatic environments. We present a 16 year-old boy with frequent exposure to aquarium water who had several nodules [sprotrichoid forms] on his right hand. Pervious studies showed that fish tank granuloma is a rare skin infection [0.27 per 100,000 population in one year]. However, taking proper history and considering the patient's signs and symptoms could be helpful in diagnosis and treatment

[Incidence of acne vulgaris in the schools of Sari, Iran during 2003-2004]

Acne vulgaris is a very common cutaneus disorder as chronic inflammation of sebaceous glands of the skin of face, chest and back that affects everyone almost once in life time. The goal of this study was to determine the prevalence of Acne vulgaris in schools of Sari in 2003-2004. In this cross-sectional-analytical study, stratified sampling method was used, to divide male and female groups, and then a multistage random sampling was performed. All of the samples were examined for Acne vulgaris by a dermatologist, according to reliable clinical and diagnostic criteria. Questionnaires containing demographic, epidemiologic and clinical variables were filled in accordingly. Two hundred samples from each stratum [400 overall], with a mean age of 15 +/- 1.51 and range of 12 of 18 years were selected. One hundred and sixty three subjects [40.75%] were affected, 50 [30.6%] male and 113 [69.4%] female with the condition being mild in 150 [92.02%] and moderate in 13 [7.98%] of the patients. The highest prevalence was in 16 years olds 52 [62.65%] and the lowest was 2 [7.4%] in 12 years olds. According to the relatively high prevalence of Acne vulgaris in puberty, especially in females, performing continuous epidermiologic studies can be a good step for interventional studies, and preventing psychologic problems caused by the disease and hence increasing the health level of the community

[Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans, a case with repeated recurrence]

Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans [DFSP] is a rare coetaneous sarcoma that originates from fibroblasts of dermis and presents as a non tender coetaneous nodule. Local slow invasion, recurrence after therapy and low risk of metastasis are its main specifications. Pathology and immunohistochemistry are used to diagnose and wide surgery is the best approach for treatment. We present a case of recurrent DFSP and review the diagnostic and therapeutic modalities of this rare tumor. The patient was a 46 year old woman with 14 years history of a tumoral lesion in antero-superior part of her left shoulder and several recurrences after 4 excisional surgery for her lesion. Pathological and immunohistochemical surveys confirmed the diagnosis of DFSP. Previous studies performed on DFSP showed that it is a rare malignant coetaneous lesion that early diagnosis and appropriate treatment can lead to a better prognosis