Assessment of diagnostic delay, morbidity, and mortality outcomes in 302 calciphylaxis patients over a 17-year period: A retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Calciphylaxis patients historically have experienced diagnostic challenges and high morbidity, however limited data is available examining these characteristics over time. OBJECTIVE: The primary goals were to a) investigate factors associated with diagnostic delay of calciphylaxis and b) assess morbidity outcomes. The secondary goal was to provide updated mortality rates. METHODS: A retrospective review of 302 adult patients diagnosed with calciphylaxis between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2022 was conducted. Univariate and multivariate statistical analyses were performed. RESULTS: Non-nephrogenic calciphylaxis (p=0.0004) and involvement of the fingers (p=0.0001) were significantly associated with an increased diagnostic delay, whereas involvement of the arms (p=0.01) and genitalia (p=0.022) resulted in fewer days to diagnosis. Almost all patients with genitalia, finger, or toe involvement had nephrogenic disease. The number of complications per patient decreased with time, especially for wound infections (p=0.028), increase in lesion number (p=0.012), and recurrent hospitalizations (p=0.020). Updated 1-year mortality rates were 36.70% and 30.77% for nephrogenic and non-nephrogenic calciphylaxis, respectively. LIMITATIONS: Limitations include the retrospective nature and data from a single institution. CONCLUSION: Diagnostic delay, particularly in non-nephrogenic calciphylaxis, and complications per patient decreased with time, highlighting the importance of continued awareness to expedite diagnosis. Mortality rates have continued to improve in recent years.

Risk Factors Predicting Cellulitis Diagnosis in a Prospective Cohort Undergoing Dermatology Consultation in the Emergency Department.

Cellulitis is an infection of the skin and skin-associated structures with many clinical mimickers known collectively as pseudocellulitis. Dermatology or infectious disease consultation is considered the gold standard for diagnosis. We evaluated a prospective cohort of adult patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with concern for lower extremity cellulitis who received dermatology consultation with conferral of a final diagnosis. Possible risk factors independently associated with cellulitis diagnosis (P<.1) were included in a logistic regression model for prediction of cellulitis diagnosis. Factors having odds ratios with a confidence interval excluding 1 were identified as significant independent predictors. The study identified factors that should be considered in evaluation of patients with suspected uncomplicated lower extremity cellulitis.

Distinguishing clinical features for pseudocellulitis in pediatric inpatients: A retrospective study.

The clinical features of 588 pediatric inpatients admitted with a diagnosis of cellulitis were reviewed with attention to diagnostic accuracy of true cellulitis (95.1%) versus pseudocellulitis (4.9%) and utilization of specialist consultations (28.1% infectious disease, 6.1% dermatology). Laboratory abnormalities were unable to distinguish cellulitis from pseudocellulitis, supporting previous studies that routine laboratory evaluation may be unnecessary for this diagnosis. Higher rates of pseudocellulitis were identified in cases involving specialist consultation by both dermatology (44.8% pseudocellulitis, 4.1% true cellulitis, p < .001) and infectious disease (48.3% pseudocellulitis, 27.0% true cellulitis, p = .01). Thus, consultation may improve the diagnostic accuracy of suspected cellulitis among pediatric inpatients.

The scope of health insurance coverage of vitiligo treatments in the United States: Implications for health care outcomes and disparities in children of color.

BACKGROUND: Patients of color are disproportionately impacted by vitiligo. Access to treatment depends greatly on insurance coverage. We, therefore, assessed current vitiligo treatment coverage policies across major United States health insurers to determine current patterns and coverage gaps for vitiligo. METHODS: The study surveyed 15 commercial health care insurers, 50 BlueCross BlueShield (BCBS) plans, Medicare, Medicaid, and Veterans Affairs. Information on treatment coverage for vitiligo, specifically pimecrolimus and tacrolimus, excimer laser therapy, PUVA, and narrow-band (nb)UVB, was collected via an online review of insurance policy documents, confirmed with phone calls to organization representatives, or via a survey of Medicaid providers, and state Medicaid directors. RESULTS: Of 17 organizations with regional or national coverage policies, 12% did not cover topical calcineurin inhibitors, 56% did not cover nbUVB phototherapy, 53% did not cover PUVA phototherapy, and 41% did not cover laser therapy. For BCBS, pimecrolimus and tacrolimus were not covered in 39% and 35% of states, respectively. NbUVB and PUVA therapy were not covered in 20% and 10% of states, respectively. Excimer laser therapy was not covered in 82% of states. Out of 32 states with accessible Medicaid information, 11 did not cover topicals, 5 did not cover nbUVB, 4 did not cover PUVA, and 7 did not cover laser. Two commonly cited reasons for coverage denial were that the treatment indication was considered cosmetic, and certain therapies are not FDA-approved. CONCLUSIONS: There is inequity in the distribution of health among vitiligo patients given current patterns of insurance coverage for treatment, which may have disproportionate impact on patients of color.

Clinical mimickers of calciphylaxis: A retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: Calciphylaxis is an ischemic vasculopathy with high morbidity and mortality. Early and accurate diagnosis is critical to management of calciphylaxis. Clinical mimickers may contribute to delayed or misdiagnosis. OBJECTIVE: To assess the rate and risk factors for misdiagnosis and to identify clinical mimickers of calciphylaxis. METHODS: A retrospective medical record review was conducted of patients with calciphylaxis at a large urban tertiary care hospital between 2006 and 2018. RESULTS: Of 119 patients diagnosed with calciphylaxis, 73.1% were initially misdiagnosed. Of patients not initially misdiagnosed, median time to diagnosis from initial presentation was 4.5 days (interquartile range, 1.0-23.3), compared to 33 days (interquartile range, 13.0-68.8) in patients who were initially misdiagnosed (P = .0002). The most common misdiagnoses were cellulitis (31.0%), unspecified skin infection (8.0%), and peripheral vascular disease (6.9%). Patients who were misdiagnosed frequently received at least 1 course of antibiotics. Patients with end-stage renal disease were less likely to be misdiagnosed than those without this disease (P = .001). LIMITATIONS: Single-center, retrospective study. CONCLUSIONS: Understanding the risk factors for misdiagnosis of calciphylaxis is an opportunity for further education concerning this rare disease.

Assessing the incidence of skin and soft tissue infection in patients on biologics.

BACKGROUND: Biologic agents may predispose patients to skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs). Guidelines recommend discontinuing the agent preoperatively; the true risk of infection is unclear. OBJECTIVES: To assess the incidence of SSTIs in patients receiving biologic agents for all clinical indications. A secondary aim was to assess those undergoing surgery to determine postoperative SSTI risk. METHODS: A retrospective medical record review was conducted at 2 urban tertiary care hospitals. Biologic agent use ranged from June 2013 to June 2018. Data were extracted on biologic agent injections, surgical procedures, and patient characteristics. RESULTS: Hypertension, former smoking, and corticosteroid use were significantly associated with SSTI risk (P < .05). There was no increased SSTI risk among biologic agents (P = .49). Biologic therapy with concomitant corticosteroid use increased risk of SSTI (P = .0049). There was no difference in postoperative SSTI risk in patients who stopped biologic therapy before surgery and those who did not. LIMITATIONS: This study is limited by its retrospective design. CONCLUSIONS: There was no increased risk of either postoperative or nonperioperative SSTI risk among biologic agents. Concomitant corticosteroid use increased SSTI risk. Current guidelines regarding stopping biologic agents before surgery warrant re-evaluation, because there was no difference in SSTI risk in patients who did so.

Use of teledermatology by dermatology hospitalists is effective in the diagnosis and management of inpatient disease.

BACKGROUND: Patient outcomes are improved when dermatologists provide inpatient consultations. Inpatient access to dermatologists is limited, illustrating an opportunity to use teledermatology. Little is known about the ability of dermatologists to accurately diagnose disease and manage inpatients with teledermatology, particularly when using nondermatologist-generated clinical data. METHODS: This prospective study assessed the ability of teledermatology to diagnose disease and manage 41 dermatology consultations from a large urban tertiary care center, using internal medicine referral documentation and photographs. Twenty-seven dermatology hospitalists were surveyed. Interrater agreement was assessed by the κ statistic. RESULTS: There was substantial agreement between in-person and teledermatology assessment of the diagnosis with differential diagnosis (median κ = 0.83), substantial agreement in laboratory evaluation decisions (median κ = 0.67), almost perfect agreement in imaging decisions (median κ = 1.0), and moderate agreement in biopsy decisions (median κ = 0.43). There was almost perfect agreement in treatment (median κ = 1.0), but no agreement in follow-up planning (median κ = 0.0). There was no association between raw photograph quality and the primary plus differential diagnosis or primary diagnosis alone. LIMITATIONS: Selection bias and single-center nature. CONCLUSIONS: Teledermatology may be effective in the inpatient setting, with concordant diagnosis, evaluation, and management decisions.

Assessment of outcomes of calciphylaxis.

BACKGROUND: Calciphylaxis is a rare thrombotic vasculopathy characterized by high morbidity and mortality. There is a paucity of studies examining longitudinal outcomes. OBJECTIVE: To assess mortality, days spent in the hospital, and amputations in patients with calciphylaxis. METHODS: A retrospective medical record review was conducted in 145 patients diagnosed with calciphylaxis at an urban tertiary care hospital from January 2006 to December 2018. RESULTS: Six-month mortality was 37.2%, and 1-year mortality was 44.1%. Patients with nephrogenic calciphylaxis had worse survival than those with nonnephrogenic calciphylaxis (P = .007). This difference in survival disappeared when limiting mortality to deaths due to calciphylaxis. Age (P = .003) and end-stage renal disease (P = .01) were risk factors associated with 1-year mortality. Diabetes mellitus was associated with greater total hospitalization days (coefficient, 1.1; 95% confidence interval, 1.01-1.4); bedside debridement was associated with fewer hospitalization days (coefficient, 0.8; 95% confidence interval, 0.7-0.9). Amputations were not associated with any of the examined risk factors. The use of warfarin followed by a transition to nonwarfarin anticoagulation was associated with decreased hazard of death (P = .01). LIMITATIONS: Retrospective nature. CONCLUSIONS: Calciphylaxis remains a complex, heterogeneous disease. Mortality is lower in patients with nonnephrogenic disease. These findings may be incorporated during discussions regarding the goals of care to facilitate informed shared decision making.

Pediatric drug eruptions.

Drug eruptions in children are common but in general less studied than their adult counterparts. Aside from having significant impact on the child's health and quality of life, these reactions can limit what medications the patient can receive in the future. Familiarity with pediatric drug eruptions is important for accurate diagnosis and to prevent future recurrence or ineffective therapy. Our current understanding of how drug reactions differ mechanistically between children and adults is poor. There are multiple factors that could be contributing to the differing incidence, presentation, and treatment modalities offered to pediatric versus adult patients. For many of these cutaneous drug reactions, the treatment regime is not standardized, being based primarily on case reports. Although not comprehensive, this review highlights common pediatric drug eruption patterns and discuss diagnostic mimickers. Five cutaneous adverse drug reactions in the pediatric population are presented: morbilliform (exanthematous) eruptions, urticarial eruptions, serum sickness-like reactions, fixed drug eruptions, and DRESS syndrome. Clinical features, diagnostic workup, and management are discussed with an emphasis on the pediatric population.