ABSTRACT
Intradermotherapy is a medical procedure introduced by Pistor in 1958 that consists in the application of intradermal injections of diluted pharmacological substances that are given directly into the region to be treated. There are reports of the use of intradermotherapy to treat painful diseases, skin diseases and unaesthetic conditions. Medical clinics have been recently offering the treatment of intradermotherapy, using the more popular name for this practice - mesotherapy. There is only scant scientific information about this subject published in periodicals indexed on MedLine. Only a few states rigorously pursue this method. Most indexed publications about this subject deal with the complications of this technique. Unaesthetic dermatoses have been a common complaint in dermatologic clinics, and it has become necessary to have scientific evidence to give to patients. Therefore, well-researched scientific studies about this technique are necessary to offer data to medical professionals that will clearly explain to patients both the benefits and the risks of these procedures. A bibliographical review was conducted and we verified the need for new studies with adequate methods to confirm the benefits of intradermotherapy as used in dermatologic treatment.
Subject(s)
Mesotherapy/standards , Humans , Injections, Intradermal/adverse effects , Injections, Intradermal/standards , Mesotherapy/adverse effects , Skin Diseases/therapyABSTRACT
A intradermoterapia é um procedimento médico introduzido por Pistor, em 1958, e consiste na aplicação, diretamente na região a ser tratada, de injeções intradérmicas de substâncias farmacológicas muito diluídas. Esse método é capaz de estimular o tecido que recebe os medicamentos tanto pela ação da punctura quanto pela ação dos fármacos, e apregoa-se que sua vantagem é evitar o uso de medicação sistêmica. Há relatos da utilização da intradermoterapia para tratamento de doenças dolorosas, dermatoses e condições consideradas inestéticas. Atualmente, clínicas médicas oferecem esse tratamento, utilizando, porém, o nome mais popular para essa prática, mesoterapia. Há escassa informação científica sobre o tema publicada em periódicos indexados no MedLine e poucos estudos com metodologia mais rigorosa sobre a eficácia e o mecanismo de ação da via intradérmica. A maioria das publicações indexadas sobre esse tema versa sobre as complicações dessa técnica. As dermatoses inestéticas têm se tornado queixas frequentes nos consultórios dermatológicos, sendo necessário um embasamento científico para lidar com tais pacientes, os quais, muitas vezes, estão em busca das novidades mostradas através da mídia. Assim, há necessidade de estudos cientificamente bem conduzidos sobre essa técnica. Estes estudos deverão oferecer aos médicos elementos para esclarecer os pacientes sobre quais benefícios esperar e quais os riscos de tal abordagem. Desse modo, realizou-se uma revisão bibliográfica sobre o assunto e constatou-se a necessidade de novos estudos com metodologia adequada para a confirmação dos benefícios da intradermoterapia como ferramenta útil no tratamento dermatológico.
Intradermotherapy is a medical procedure introduced by Pistor in 1958 that consists in the application of intradermal injections of diluted pharmacological substances that are given directly into the region to be treated. There are reports of the use of intradermotherapy to treat painful diseases, skin diseases and unaesthetic conditions. Medical clinics have been recently offering the treatment of intradermotherapy, using the more popular name for this practice - mesotherapy. There is only scant scientific information about this subject published in periodicals indexed on MedLine. Only a few states rigorously pursue this method. Most indexed publications about this subject deal with the complications of this technique. Unaesthetic dermatoses have been a common complaint in dermatologic clinics, and it has become necessary to have scientific evidence to give to patients. Therefore, well-researched scientific studies about this technique are necessary to offer data to medical professionals that will clearly explain to patients both the benefits and the risks of these procedures. A bibliographical review was conducted and we verified the need for new studies with adequate methods to confirm the benefits of intradermotherapy as used in dermatologic treatment.
Subject(s)
Humans , Mesotherapy/standards , Injections, Intradermal/adverse effects , Injections, Intradermal/standards , Mesotherapy/adverse effects , Skin Diseases/therapyABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Lentigo maligna (LM) is a common melanocytic malignancy which requires therapy because of the risk of progression to invasive lentigo maligna melanoma which a much worse prognosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 18 patients with clinical and histopathological diagnosis of LM were treated with cryosurgery. The patients were older Caucasians (mean age 59.5 years) and 11 were male. They were chosen for cryosurgery because the lesion posed a surgical challenge or the patient was not a good surgical candidate. They were treated with two freeze-thaw cycles of liquid nitrogen under local anesthesia in a single sitting. Lesions larger than 2 cm(2) were divided into smaller segments for freezing. RESULTS: The lesions resolved clinically in all cases, with no recurrence or metastasis detected during a mean follow-up of 75.5 months. Some patients developed hypopigmented scars. CONCLUSIONS: Cryosurgery with liquid nitrogen is an efficient, safe and in most cases aesthetically acceptable alternative method to treat LM.