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Pityrosporum folliculitis (PF) is a fungal acneiform disease of the hair follicles that often presents with pruritic papules and pustules on the upper body and face. This condition is commonly mistaken for acne vulgaris and can be distinguished from bacterial acne by the presence of fungal spores in the follicular lumen. Although studies have been performed to describe PF in cohorts, little work has been done to aggregate these data. Thus, the goal of this review is to describe the clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of PF in immunocompetent patients. PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase were searched using the terms "Pityrosporum folliculitis" or "Malassezia folliculitis." All cohorts reporting PF characteristics in patients classified as immunocompetent were reviewed. A total of 15 studies were included. Majority of patients were male (64%) with the average age of presentation of 24.26 years. The most common locations of lesions were the chest (70%) and back/shoulders (69.2%). Pruritus was reported by the majority of patients (71.7%). Additionally, 40.5% of patients reported a history of unsuccessful treatment regimens. Treatment was most successful with an oral antifungal (92%), followed by a topical antifungal (81.6%). In conclusion, majority of patients with PF were younger males. Many patients were primarily treated incorrectly, suggesting the importance of proper diagnosis. PF may be distinguishable from acne vulgaris by the presence of pruritus or suggested when a new acneiform eruption develops following antibiotic therapy or immunosuppression. When properly diagnosed, majority of cases of PF achieve complete response with oral or topical antifungals.

Purpose of reviewPityriasis lichenoides (PL) is a spectrum of dermatological conditions involving polymorphous lesions. Natural history of the condition ranges from acute to chronic. Cases of PL following SARS-CoV-2 infection/vaccination have been reported, but not yet comprehensively reviewed. Hence, the objective of this article is to review and summarize cases of PL following SARS-CoV-2 infection/vaccination in order to guide clinicians in its diagnosis and management.Recent findingsPubMed, Embase, and Web of Science were searched for relevant articles. Thirteen articles, consisting of 14 cases of PL following SARS-CoV-2 infection/vaccination, were identified. Males represented 64.3% of cases, and the average age of those affected was 41.4 years. The majority of cases (N = 9, 64.3%) were following SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, the most commonly implicated being Pfizer-BioNTech (n = 8/10, 80%), while four (28.6) followed infection. The overall latency period ranged from 5 days to 1 month. Treatments varied greatly. However, at the time of follow-up, 12/14 patients (85.7%) had either marked improvement or complete resolution of lesions.SummaryThis review cannot determine causality. However, a temporal association was observed with the case reports, and one case of PL followed SARS-CoV-2 infection and recurred with subsequent vaccination, suggesting an association. Nevertheless, risk of developing PL following SARS-CoV-2 infection/vaccination is likely extremely low. There is also the possibility these cases are purely coincidental. Still, clinicians should be aware of this possible etiology when diagnosing a new or exacerbated case of PL. Finally, given that the majority of patients had marked improvement or complete resolution of lesions at the time of follow-up, clinicians should provide reassurance to their affected patients.

We studied the impact of metacognitive reflections on recently-completed work as a way to improve the retention of newly learned problem-solving techniques. Students video recorded themselves talking through problems immediately after finishing them, completed ongoing problem-solving strategy maps or problem-sorting exercises, and filled out detailed exam wrappers. We assessed students' problem-solving skillfulness using a combination of validated instruments and final exam questions scored using a rubric that targets problem-solving best practices. We found a small but significant difference between the rubric score distributions for the control and treatment groups. However, a multiple ordered logistic regression using treatment and Force Concept Inventory (FCI) pretest score as predictors showed that this difference is better explained by the latter. The surprising impact of conceptual preparation on problem-solving skill suggests two things: the importance of remediation for students with insufficient conceptual understanding and the need to consider problem-solving interventions in the context of students' conceptual knowledge base.

Given that alopecia areata is typically considered an acquired autoimmune condition, congenital cases call our understanding of alopecia areata into question and may provide additional insight into the underlying pathophysiology. Alopecia areata describes nonscarring, generally patchy, hair loss which can affect the entire scalp (alopecia totalis) and body (alopecia universalis).[[1]] Although the exact pathogenesis is not yet understood, alopecia areata is considered an acquired autoimmune condition.[[1]] Prevalence of alopecia areata peaks between ages 10 and 30, and younger age at presentation is generally considered a poor prognostic factor.[1] However, cases of congenital alopecia areata have been reported.[[1], [3]] Diagnosing congenital alopecia areata is difficult, as many other conditions should be ruled out including, but not limited to, tinea capitis, neonatal telogen effluvium, triangular alopecia, atrichia congenita, Marie-Unna hypotrichosis, and traction alopecia.[[1], [3]] However, proper diagnosis of congenital alopecia areata is important, as treatment is possible.[[1], [3]] Therefore, this study aimed to analyze data from existing congenital alopecia areata reports. Acquired alopecia areata and congenital alopecia areata seem to have many clinical/epidemiological similarities. [Extracted from the article]

This article discusses the relationship between diet and hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), a chronic inflammatory skin condition. The authors conducted a cross-sectional analysis of Reddit posts and reviewed the literature to explore the impact of diet on HS flares. They found that HS patients had lower levels of certain vitamins and minerals, and dietary interventions such as caloric and carbohydrate restriction showed subjective improvement in disease symptoms. The analysis of Reddit posts revealed that topics such as sugar and dairy were frequently implicated in HS flares. The authors suggest that clinicians should be aware of these discussions to provide appropriate dietary counseling to patients. [Extracted from the article]

Water and/or soap and water solutions have historically been used as first‐line decontamination strategies for a wide variety of dermal contaminants from workplace exposure, environmental pesticides, and civilian chemical warfare. Although water and/or soap and water solutions are often considered a gold standard of decontamination, many studies have found other decontamination methods to be superior. This systematic review summarizes the available data on in vitro animal models contaminated with a various chemicals and their decontamination with water and/or soap and water solutions using in vitro animal models. A comprehensive literature search was performed using Concordance, Embase, PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, and Google Scholar to find in vitro animal studies that provided data on dermal decontamination using water and/or soap and water solutions. Five studies were included that analyzed 11 contaminants across two in vitro animal models (rats and pigs). Water alone was used as a decontamination method for 63.6% of the contaminants (n = 7/11) and water and soap solutions for decontamination in 54.6% of contaminants (n = 6/11). Water alone provided incomplete contaminant removal of five of seven contaminants studied; soap and water did not show significant difference in decontamination when compared with other solutions for all four contaminants and was superior to water for both contaminants studied. Water and/or soap and water are used as decontamination strategies for a variety of dermal contamination events, but for many contaminants, they do not provide complete contamination when compared with newer decontamination solutions studied with in vitro animal models. This systematic review compares water and/or soap and water dermal decontamination to other decontamination solutions using in vitro animal models. Five studies met inclusion criteria that analyzed 11 contaminants across two animal models. Water provided incomplete decontamination for 5/7 contaminants studied. Soap and water was superior to water alone for both contaminants studied and did not show significantly different decontamination efficacy compared with other solutions in 4/4 contaminants. Additional research is needed to continue improving efficacy of dermal decontamination solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lichen planus following SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination? Rather, this paper aims to educate physicians so their differential diagnosis of a dermatological reaction following SARS-CoV-2 infection/vaccination will include LP, and their history taking for a case of LP includes inquiring about recent SARS-CoV-2 infection/vaccination. Articles reporting new onset or exacerbation of LP following SARS-CoV-2 infection/vaccination were included. [Extracted from the article]