Background: Rosacea is the chronic inflammatory disease of the facial skin. Although its etiology is not clear yet, inflammatory processes triggered by oxidative stress and oxidation of lipids have been suggested to have a role. While studies on the relationship between inflammation and oxidative stress are ongoing, thiol metabolism and its role in oxidative stress have also begun to be investigated. Thiols are among the key molecules of protein metabolism in the organism and they are firstly consumed antioxidants in case of oxidative stress. Thiols regulate intracellular redox metabolism and protect keratinocytes against the results of oxidative alterations in the stratum corneum. There is a balance known as dynamic thiol/disulfide homeostasis between thiols and their oxidized forms; disulfides. Aim: This study aimed to determine the effects of oxidative stress on protein metabolism in rosacea patients by investigating thiol/disulfide homeostasis using a newly developed and fully automated method. Determination of plasma thiol levels provides important clues regarding the extent of free radical-mediated oxidation of proteins causing damage in rosacea. Methods: The study included 50 rosacea patients who were diagnosed clinically or histopathologically with rosacea and 42 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. Serum plasma levels of native thiol, total thiol, and disulfide were determined. The following ratios were calculated: Disulfide/native thiol ratio, disulfide/total thiol ratio, and native thiol/total thiol ratio. Results:The mean age was 41.8±10.5 in the rosacea patients (35 females) and 42.5±10.3 years in the control group (33 females). The mean disulfide level was found to be significantly higher in the rosacea patients than in the control group (23.4±5.5 µM/L and 17.3±6.2µM/L, respectively; p < 0.001). The mean disulfide/native thiol ratio (0.055±0.016 vs. 0.041±0.017) and the mean disulfide/total thiol ratio (0.049±0.012 vs.0.037±0.013) were significantly higher and the mean native thiol/total thiol ratio (0.884±0.118 vs. 0.923±0.027) was significantly lower in the patients as compared with the controls (p < 0.05 for all). Conclusion: In rosacea patients, the thiol/disulfide balance was observed to shift towards disulfides, which could be considered an indicator of oxidative stress in rosacea.

Background: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) causes significant physical, social, and psychological burdens. Internalized stigma, acceptance of negative attitudes and stereotypes of society regarding a person’s illness, has not been studied previously in HS. Objectives: The objective of this study was to investigate the internalized stigma state of HS patients and identify the factors affecting it. Methods: This multicenter, prospective, cross-sectional study included 731 patients. Internalized Stigma Scale (ISS), Hurley staging, Physician Global Assessment, Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), Skindex-16, Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), and Visual Analog Scale (VAS)-pain score were used in the study. Results: The mean ISS value (57.50 ± 16.90) was comparable to the mean ISS values of studies in visible dermatological and various psychiatric diseases. A significant correlation was found between the mean values of ISS and all disease activity scores, quality of life measures, BDI-II, and VAS-pain scores. Obesity, family history, low education and income level, vulva/scrotum involvement and being actively treated are significant and independent predictive factors for high internalized stigma in multivariate analysis. Conclusions: HS patients internalize society’s negative judgements, which may create a profound negative effect on access to health care. Therefore, in addition to suppressing disease activity, addressing internalized stigma is fundamental for improving health care quality.

Seborrheic dermatitis is a common papulosquamous skin disease with unknown pathogenesis. The aim of our study was to determine the serum level of 25-hydroxy vitamin D in patients with seborrheic dermatitis SD.

Background: Pityriasis rosea (PR) is a common, acute, self-limiting inflammatory skin disease. It can easily be recognized with its typical clinical presentation. However, unusual clinic presentations can cause difficulty in diagnosis. Up to now, not many atypical forms are reported. Objective: To determine the clinical characteristics of patients with atypical pityriasis rosea. Methods: A total of 27 cases, diagnosed as atypical PR by clinical and/or histopathological examination and applied to the outpatient clinic of dermatology department between the years 2007 and 2015 were analyzed retrospectively. Results: The ages of patients ranged from 2 to 59 years. Of these patients, 15 (55.6%) were male and 12 (44.4%) were female. The male-to-female ratio was 5–4. Five patients had papular, four patients had purpuric, three patients had vesicular, two patients had follicular, one patient had erythema multiforme-like and one patient had eczematous drug-induced atypical form of pityriasis rosea. There were 12 cases of localized, two cases of segmental pityriasis rosea. Four of the localized forms also had atypical morphology. Histopathological evaluation was required for diagnosis in 12 (44.4%) patients. Conclusions: PR can appear in many different uncommon forms. Localization and skin rush can be misleading and diagnosis can be compelling.