A Prospective Observational Study to Evaluate the Factors Affecting the Dermatology Life Quality Index in Patients With Hidradenitis Suppurativa.

BACKGROUND: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic, relapsing inflammatory skin disease that significantly affects the quality of life of patients. Multiple factors affect the disease's course and severity. HS is a debilitating disease and often recalcitrant to treatment, resulting in a deterioration of quality of life; hence, there is a need to evaluate the factors affecting the quality of life in patients with HS. OBJECTIVES: The objective of the study was to evaluate the various demographic and disease-related factors that affect the quality of life of patients with HS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a prospectively scored questionnaire-based observational study. Data from 30 patients with HS were analyzed for the association of disease-related factors like Hurley's staging, site, duration, past history, and comorbidities with the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI). RESULTS: A statistically significant relationship was found between DLQI and Hurley staging (p=0.000). The most common sites involved were the axilla and inguinal regions. Among the sites involved, the neck (p=0.002), abdomen (p=0.002), back (p=0.002), thighs (p=0.042), and gluteal (p=0.000) regions have a statistically significant association with DLQI. Prior histories of rheumatoid arthritis, scarring, surgery, lymphadenitis, and pilonidal sinus showed a statistically significant association with DLQI. CONCLUSION: The disease severity significantly hampers the quality of life of patients with HS. The disease site and presence of other comorbidities also influence the outcome. Our study will help healthcare providers better understand and fulfill the needs of patients suffering from HS.

A Randomized Comparative Study of Intralesional Tranexemic Acid and Kligman's Regimen in Indian Patients with Melasma.

Context: Melasma is an acquired chronic disorder of hyperpigmentation. Tranexamic acid (TXA) has been shown to be effective in reducing the severity of melasma. Aims: The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy of intralesional TXA with topical Kligman's regimen in the treatment of facial melasma and to assess their safety profile. Settings and Design: A double arm open-labeled randomized controlled trial was conducted at a tertiary care center in western India. Materials and Methods: Sixty-eight cases of facial melasma of either sex and age ≥ 18 years were randomized into two groups. Group A received intradermal injections of TXA 4 mg/mL, whereas group B received topical Kligman's therapy. Patients were evaluated at baseline, 4th, 8th, and 12th week semi-objectively using modified melasma area severity index (mMASI) score, physician's global assessment scale, and patient's global assessment scale. Statistical Analysis: Data were analyzed using SPSS v16 software. Mann-Whitney U-test, Friedman's analysis of variance test, and Pearson's χ2 test were used. P-value less than 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: Fifty-nine patients completed the study. The decrease in mean mMASI score was statistically significant at 4th, 8th, and 12th week for both groups. On intergroup comparison, a statistically significant difference was observed between both the groups at 12th week (P < 0.01), with group B showing better response to therapy but no difference at baseline and at 4th and 8th week. Group A showed no significant side effects, whereas group B showed erythema, burning, and hypopigmentation in nine, six, and three patients, respectively. Conclusion: Kligman's regimen remains the gold standard for melasma but with multiple serious adverse effects. Intralesional TXA is a safe and promising modality in the treatment of melasma. It can be used in non-responding cases and in those who develop side effects of Kligman's regimen.

Hepatic and hematological adverse effects of long-term low-dose methotrexate therapy in rheumatoid arthritis: An observational study.

OBJECTIVES: Methotrexate (MTX) is the most commonly used cost-effective disease-modifying antirheumatoid drug (DMARD). Its main dose-limiting adverse effects are hepatic and hematopoietic. This cross-sectional, observational study evaluated the prevalence of hepatic and hematological adverse effects with long-term low-dose MTX therapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients taking ≤15 mg/week MTX for at least 2 years were enrolled from the rheumatology outpatient department. Demographic, disease, drug treatment profiles, and hematological and hepatic enzyme levels were noted. RESULTS: Of the 204 patients enrolled, the frequency of raised alanine transaminase level (≥3-fold rise above the upper limit of normal) was 6.37% (95% confidence interval of 3.76-10.59) including two biopsy-proven hepatic fibrosis cases. About 5.4% had severe anemia (<8 g/dl) and 4.4% had leukopenia. CONCLUSION: Long-term low-dose MTX is safe in RA patients in the Indian population. The patterns of adverse effects were similar to those documented in earlier studies. However, our study results suggest that disease duration, cumulative MTX dose, concomitant DMARD intake are not risk factors associated with hepatic or hematological adverse effects.

Knowledge and perception regarding clinical trials among doctors of government medical colleges: A questionnaire-based study.

AIMS: By virtue of being a specialized field by itself, the science of clinical trials (CTs) may not be well understood by doctors who are not specifically trained in it. A lack of knowledge may translate to a negative perception toward CT. With the idea of getting a situational snapshot, we estimated the knowledge and perception of CTs among doctors from government medical colleges of West Bengal who are not trained on CT in their postgraduate curriculum. Several determinants of knowledge and perception regarding CT were also evaluated. METHODS: We have quantified the knowledge and perception of CTs by a structured validated questionnaire. Development and validation of the questionnaire was performed prior to the study. RESULTS: Among 133 participants, 7.5% received focused training on CT and 16.5% participated in CTs as investigators. Majority of the doctors were unfamiliar with the basic terminologies such as, "adverse event" and "good clinical practice." Encouragingly, 93.3% doctors advised that a detailed discussion of CT methodology should be incorporated in the under graduate medical science curriculum. They had an overall positive attitude toward CTs conducted in India, with a mean score that is 72.6% of the maximum positive score. However, a large number of the doctors were skeptical about the primary motivation and operations of pharmaceutical industry sponsored CTs, with 45% of them believing that patients are exploited in these sponsored CTs. CONCLUSION: Participant doctors had a basic knowledge of CT methodology. The study has revealed specific areas of deficient knowledge, which might be emphasized while designing focused training on CT methodology.