RESUMO
Objective:To evaluate the efficacy of long-pulsed 1 064-nm Nd:YAG laser combined with a topical emulsion containing Camellia reticulata and Radix Notoginseng in the treatment of melasma. Methods:A total of 80 patients with melasma were enrolled from Department of Dermatology, People′s Hospital of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region from June 2019 to June 2020, and randomly and equally divided into control group and observation group by using a random number table: 40 patients in the control group were treated with long-pulsed 1 064-nm Nd:YAG laser once every 2 weeks for 6 sessions as a course of treatment; another 40 in the observation group were treated with the same laser therapy as the control group and a topical emulsion containing Camellia reticulata and Radix Notoginseng twice a day for 3 months as a course of treatment. Melasma area and severity index (MASI), clinical efficacy, patient satisfaction rate and safety were compared between the 2 groups before and/or after treatment. Results:After 4- and 8-week treatment, there was no significant difference in the MASI score between the observation group (14.57 ± 3.22 points, 10.00 ± 2.94 points, respectively) and control group (14.74 ± 3.11 points, 11.31 ± 3.00 points, respectively; both P>0.05). After 12-week treatment, the MASI score was significantly lower in the observation group (4.80 ± 2.78 points) than in the control group (7.07 ± 3.22 points, t = -3.38, P<0.01). After 3-month treatment, the response rate was significantly higher in the observation group (36 cases, 90%) than in the control group (31 cases, 77.5%; χ2 = 4.58, P < 0.001) ; however, there was no significant difference in the patient satisfaction rate between the observation group (87.5%) and control group (72.5%, χ2 = 7.26, P = 0.06). In addition, no significant difference in the occurrence of adverse reactions was observed between the observation group (5 cases, 12.5%) and control group (7 cases, 17.5%; P > 0.05) . Conclusion:Compared with the long-pulsed 1 064-nm Nd:YAG laser alone, the topical emulsion containing Camellia reticulata and Radix Notoginseng in combination with the long-pulsed 1 064-nm Nd:YAG laser is more effective for the treatment of melasma, with higher patient satisfaction and less adverse reactions.
RESUMO
Objective To investigate expressions of phosphorylated c-Jun N-terminal kinase (p-JNK)and P38 mitogen-activated protein kinase(p-P38MAPK)in psoriasis vulgaris lesions. Methods Tissue specimens were obtained from lesions of 30 patients with psoriasis vulgaris and normal skin of 30 healthy human controls. An immunohistochemical study and Western-blot analysis were performed to measure protein expressions of p-JNK and p-P38MAPK in these skin specimens. Results As the immunohistochemical study showed, the expressions of p-JNK and p-P38MAPK(expressed as the average optical density [AOD]value for targeted proteins)were significantly higher in psoriasis vulgaris lesions than in normal skin tissues (p-JNK: 0.663 ± 0.016 vs. 0.333 ± 0.009, t = 44.869, P < 0.001; p-P38MAPK: 0.436 ± 0.011 vs. 0.306 ± 0.010, t = 21.913, P < 0.001). Western-blot analysis also showed increased protein expressions of p-JNK and p-P38MAPK in psoriasis vulgaris lesions compared with normal skin tissues (t = 20.477, 165.084, respectively, both P <0.05). Conclusion The activation of JNK and P38MAPK may be involved in the overproliferation of epidermal cells in psoriasis vulgaris lesions.