Prurigo Pigmentosa: A Clinicopathological Report of Three Middle Eastern Patients.

Prurigo pigmentosa is a unique cutaneous inflammatory disorder characterized by a sudden onset of pruritic and erythematous macules, urticarial papules, and plaques that may coalesce to form a reticulated pattern. Lesions typically heal within weeks leaving a reticulated and mottled postinflammatory hyperpigmentation. The majority of reported cases originate from Japan with much fewer cases described worldwide without predominant ethnicity. The histopathological features of prurigo pigmentosa can be nonspecific; however, distinct features exist for each stage of the disease. The aetiology of prurigo pigmentosa is not fully understood. However, ketoacidosis has been implicated in the pathogenesis and indeed prurigo pigmentosa has been associated with ketoacidotic states such as diabetes mellitus, fasting, dieting, and anorexia nervosa. In this report, we present 3 Jordanian patients with prurigo pigmentosa and describe their clinicopathological features. One patient developed prurigo pigmentosa while fasting during the month of Ramadan and another was undertaking a strict diet. No associations were identified in the third patient. In view of the largely nonspecific clinical and histological features, a high index of suspicion is required as many cases of prurigo pigmentosa are probably undiagnosed.

Smart microneedle coatings for controlled delivery and biomedical analysis.

The work presented demonstrates an unconventional approach in the preparation of smart microneedle (MN) coatings utilising electrohydrodynamic atomisation (EHDA) principles. Stainless steel (600-900 µm in height) MNs were coupled to a ground electrode (in the EHDA coating set-up) with the deposition distance and collecting methodology varied for an ethanol:methanol (50:50) vehicle system. The preparation of nano- and micrometre-scaled pharmaceutical coatings was achieved. Fluorescein dye (serving as potential drug, sensory materials or disease state markers) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP, polymer matrix system) formed the remaining components of the coating formulation. Based on these excipients and by varying the coating process, particles (100 nm to 3 µm) and fibres (400 nm to 1 µm) were deposited directly on MNs in controlled and selectable fashion (flow rates variable ∼ 5-50 µL/min, applied voltage variable 6-19 kV). These demonstrated options for multiple targeting and analysis applications. The underlying EHDA process permits room temperature fabrication, controlled output and scale-up potential for emerging MN devices as drug systems or lab-chip testing devices.