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Delusions of parasitosis (DOP), a psychiatric disorder in which patients erroneously insist that they are infested with parasites, remains a fascinating entity with elusive origins. Typically, these patients are resistant to psychiatric referral and treatment with psychotropic medications. We discuss the classification, epidemiology, clinical presentation, etiology, associated features, and differential diagnosis of this disorder. The authors reviewed case reports and clinical trials and tabulated the epidemiologic data, which show DOP is more common than previously thought.

Although lionfish can be found in all the oceans, the highest incidences of human stings appear to be in the tropics, especially in the Indo-Pacific area and Mediterranean Sea. The recent interest in tropical fish aquaria has expanded the geographic range of the stings of these animals.

We report a case of Sneddon's syndrome with the triad of livedo reticularis, hypertension, and neurologic symptoms. The procedures for diagnosis and the tests to delineate clotting abnormalities are examined.

Crude petroleum serves as the precursor for thousands of chemicals found in a variety of commercial and industrial products. The authors present a brief background on the composition of petroleum and the production of its derivatives, a description of the common cutaneous manifestations of petroleum derivative exposure, and a review of the treatment options for these diseases.

Peripheral blood lymphocytes from sensitized persons proliferate in response to naturally occurring (coelenterate) venoms. Ultraviolet exposure decreases the proliferation. This decrease is widespread and also extends to responses against pathogens, mitogens, and endogenous proteins. Ultraviolet exposure alters human immunity by many means, including affecting circulating T-cells. Since venoms act by immunologic as well as toxic pathways, any abrogation of normal immunity could enhance their action on man.

A 40-year-old white woman with a history of diabetes mellitus, hypothyroidism, irritable bowel syndrome, and Turner's syndrome presented with widespread lichen planus. She also had extensive erosions of her oral and vaginal mucosa, along with diffuse noncicatricial alopecia. The patient's condition was refractory to most topical therapies, and improved with oral psoralen/ultraviolet A. Previous associations of lichen planus with other medical disorders have been described, yet its occurrence with Turner's syndrome is yet unrecognized.

Olindias sambaquiensis, Muller 1861 (Hydrozoa: Limnomedusae: Olindiidae) is a neritic jellyfish endemic in the Blanca Bay area (South of Buenos Aires, Argentina). In this paper we describe the first report of a dermatitis caused by this jellyfish in a thirty-four-year-old marine biologist who presented with an erythematous vesicular eruption after contact with Olindias sambaquiensis. Some preliminary ultramicroscopic observations on the nematocysts of this jellyfish are also reported.

A young man had persistent hyperpigmentation on the face following a jellyfish (Pelagia noctiluca) sting four years previously. This localized lesion resolved within forty days after topical hydroquinone (1.8 percent) therapy was instituted. This case is presented to demonstrate that persistent hyperpigmentation occurring after coelenterate stings can be treated with a topical bleaching agent.

Elevated levels of serum anti-sea nettle venom IgE persisted for several years in two patients who had exaggerated reactions to jellyfish (sea nettle, Chrysaora quinquecirrha) stings. These antibodies also cross reacted with Portuguese man-of war venom. The determination of increased antigen specific IgE concentrations may be of value in identifying patients "at risk" or in diagnosing stings by "unseen" animals. Because of the increased frequency of IgE radioallergosorbent testing (RAST) in dermatologic practice, a brief review of the use of this test is included.

During the past twenty years while wearing the hats of resident, fellow, physician, researcher and professor, I have made several observations which I wish to share.

The clinical evaluation of alopecia is becoming less precise as more histopathologic correlations become available. According to the classic approach, the clinician should initially differentiate between scarring and nonscarring alopecia. Because several case reports in the past ten years have demonstrated that the definition of "scarring alopecia" is ambiguous, the use of the traditional schema--scarring versus nonscarring--may well be outmoded. Therefore, we propose a new algorithm for the evaluation of alopecia that emphasizes the importance of both clinical and histologic findings.

A case of acne on the legs of a 55-year-old white woman is reported. The drugs and chemicals that are known to cause acneiform eruptions are reviewed. No clues to the localization of the disease in this patient were detected.