Farzam Gorouhi

BACKGROUND: Lichen planus is a common chronic inflammatory mucocutaneous disease, affecting 0.1% to 4% of the general population. There is no published randomized active control clinical trial on pimecrolimus for the treatment of oral lichen planus (OLP).

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of pimecrolimus 1% cream with triamcinolone acetonide 0.1% paste in treating OLP.

METHODS: In this investigator-blinded parallel-group randomized clinical ...

Inflammation is one of the early phases in the development of gastric cancer. Therefore, several studies have examined the association of polymorphisms in tumour-necrosis factor-A gene (TNF-A) with gastric cancer risk. This meta-analysis reviews and summarises published evidence for these associations. Searching several databases yielded 24 independent studies that reported on the associations between TNF-A polymorphisms and gastric cancer risk. We analysed available data for the most ...

OBJECTIVE: To compare the long-term effectiveness and safety of long-pulsed Nd:YAG and alexandrite lasers, individually and in combination, in long-term leg hair reduction.

DESIGN: Randomized, single-center, within-participant, investigator-blinded, active-controlled clinical trial.

SETTING: Private skin laser center.

PARTICIPANTS: Twenty individuals aged 16 to 50 years with skin phototypes III and IV.

INTERVENTIONS: The medial and lateral sides of each participant's legs were randomly ...

OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy and safety of imiquimod in combination with meglumine antimoniate in treating cutaneous leishmaniasis.

DESIGN: Prospective, randomized, assessor-blind, parallel-design, placebo-controlled trial.

SETTING: Two primary care health clinics.

PATIENTS: One hundred nineteen patients (59 patients in the imiquimod group and 60 in the placebo group) were included in the study.

INTERVENTIONS: Patients were randomly assigned to receive a combined 4-week course of ...

The frequency of sensitization to contact allergens varies in different countries because of both genetic and, more importantly, allergen exposure variations. The objective is to determine the frequency of sensitization to contact allergens in Iranian patients with dermatitis. 250 patients with a clinical diagnosis of contact dermatitis and/or atopic dermatitis were evaluated with a 28-allergen screening series recommended by the German Contact Dermatitis Research Group from September ...

Previous studies demonstrate that skin wounds generate epinephrine (EPI) that can activate local adrenergic receptors (ARs), impairing healing. Bacterially derived activators of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) within the wound initiate inflammatory responses and can also impair healing. In this study, we examined the hypothesis that these two pathways crosstalk to one another, using EPI and macrophage-activating lipopeptide-2 (MALP2) to activate ARs and TLR2, respectively, in human bone ...

BACKGROUND: Unwanted facial hair can have adverse psychological effects on women and reduce their quality of life.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effects of unwanted facial hair removal with laser on improving quality of life.

METHODS: In this study, 70 patients treated for unwanted facial hair by laser were assessed by Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) questionnaire on admission and 3 months later after three sessions of laser treatment.

RESULTS: The DLQI score before treatment was 9.42 ...

Stress-induced hormones can alter the inflammatory response to tissue injury; however, the precise mechanism by which epinephrine influences inflammatory response and wound healing is not well defined. Here we demonstrate that epinephrine alters the neutrophil (polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN))-dependent inflammatory response to a cutaneous wound. Using noninvasive real-time imaging of genetically tagged PMNs in a murine skin wound, chronic, epinephrine-mediated stress was modeled by ...

OBJECTIVE: To determine the impact of sumatriptan prophylaxis on acute mountain sickness (AMS) and altitude headache development within 24 hours of ascent, we designed a double-blind, randomized, clinical trial.

METHODS: A prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial was conducted in Tochal Mountain Hotel at an altitude of 3,500 meters above sea level during October 2006 to November 2006. A total of 102 Iranian adults were assigned to receive either sumatriptan ...

PURPOSE: To determine the time needed to reach corneal stability after discontinued daily wear of soft contact lenses and to identify corneal topographic and pachymetric changes during this period.

METHODS: We prospectively studied the eyes of 21 consecutive soft contact lens wearers evaluated for keratorefractive surgery. Each eye was examined once immediately after lens removal, 3 and 7 days later, and weekly thereafter. At each visit, manifest refraction, keratometry, corneal ...

Headache is the most prevalent symptom of acute mountain sickness. We conducted a pilot clinical trial at an altitude of 3500 m to evaluate the efficacy of gabapentin in treatment of high-altitude headache (HAH). Twenty-four adult HAH patients (10 female, 14 male; age 18-50 years) were randomly assigned to receive either 300 mg of gabapentin capsule or identical placebo. After 1 h the presence of HAH and need to receive supplementary analgesic were assessed. The duration of the HAH-free ...

BACKGROUND: Pemphigus vulgaris (PV) is a severe blistering disease involving the skin and mucous membranes. The most common causes of death in these patients are adverse effects of drugs, and infection. Skin lesions are one of the important sources of infection. Thus, any local treatment that could reduce healing time of lesions and consequently reduce the total dosage of drugs needed to treat is favourable.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of epidermal growth factor (EGF) in reducing ...

BACKGROUND: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is caused by different species of Leishmania and transmitted by the bite of infected sand flies. It is a health problem in many countries.

OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to assess the evidence for the efficacy of different therapeutic modalities for acute Old World CL, which is usually caused by L major and L tropica.

METHODS: Evidence was reviewed according to the hierarchy of evidence. Because there have been no published systematic reviews ...

Lichen planus (LP) is a chronic inflammatory disorder that most often affects middle-aged adults. LP can involve the skin or mucous membranes including the oral, vulvovaginal, esophageal, laryngeal, and conjunctival mucosa. It has different variants based on the morphology of the lesions and the site of involvement. The literature suggests that certain presentations of the disease such as esophageal or ophthalmological involvement are underdiagnosed. The burden of the disease is higher ...

Chronic venous leg ulcers are profoundly debilitating and result in billions in health care expenditure. Thus, there is a quest for engineered and innovative approaches. Herein we present a 63-year-old patient with a 30 year history of venous stasis and left lower extremity ulcers, which have been refractory to standard of care, anticoagulation and venous stripping. The medial ulcer was treated with transplantation of autologous adipose mesenchymal stem cell (AMSC)-enriched, high-density ...