In January 2015, Eva Bearryman, Junior Communications Manager, EURORDIS, posted the following article about the codification of rare diseases. This is one of those issues where the worldwide PRP community willingly observes from afar. However, knowing how skin diseases are coded helps us understand where we fit in the rare skin disease puzzle. <><><><><><><><><><><><><> Codification means […]
Does your rare disease have a code? Read More »
Editor’s Note: The adage about teaching an “old dog” and “new tricks” took an unexpected twist in Denver during the annual meeting of the American Association of Dermatologists. Turning 68 in May, this “old dog” didn’t learn a new trick; he learned a new word: iatrogenic. As published in The Road Less Traveled… (April 15, 2014, page 11)
What is the IATROGENIC effect? Read More »
02.04.09 MisDX —Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine Welcome There are probably no cognitive tasks more challenging than diagnosis in medicine. There are over 10,000 known diseases and this list grows every year. Being able to match a patient’s problems to one of these entities requires a remarkable ability to synthesize information and integrate this
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From the Editor… According to an article written by Alexandra Sufferlin, a writer and producer for Time Healthland and published on April 24, 2013, diagnostic errors are the most common type of medical mistake. In fact, missed diagnoses out-ranked medication overdoses and surgical mistakes in causing the most patient harm. She writes: When Dr. David
Are diagnostic errors a common medical mistake? Read More »
2013 PRP Biopsy Poll During the summer of 2013, a total of 487 PRP patients were polled by email and given an opportunity to participate in a first-of-its-kind PRP Biopsy Poll. Remarkably, a total of 256 invitees (52.6%) shared their biopsy experiences and/or recollections. Dx with no biopsy ordered: 7.8% Dx with no contradictory
What did we learn from the 2013 PRP Biopsy Poll? Read More »
Editor’s Note: A skin biopsy is routinely performed in the dermatologist’s office. Preparation ✽ Tell your doctor if you have any allergies to medications, and especially if you have had any reactions to local anesthetics, such as lidocaine or novocaine, or to iodine cleaning solutions, such as Betadine.44. ✽ Inform your doctor if you
How is a biopsy performed? Read More »
Why is it so difficult to diagnose PRP? Dan M, Rutland, Vermont, a dermatologist, was diagnosed with PRP in July, 2015 and is currently in remission. He posted the following to fellow members of the PRP Facebook Support Group. “PRP can mimic other much more common skin like contact dermatitis, eczema and psoriasis. A
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How do PRP symptoms progress over the body? The PRP timeline varies from sequential to haphazard. For some PRP patients the inflammation spreads like a wildfire. Others watch a slow, methodical movement from “hither to yon” where neither hither nor yon is predictable. Here are some of the symptoms fellow PRP patients and their caregivers
How do PRP symptoms progress? Read More »
When a dermatologist examines a patient who will eventually be diagnosed with PRP, they may see signs and symptoms that suggest a more common skin disorder. When that dermatologist combines medical training, clinical observations and biopsies and makes a diagnosis of psoriasis or atopic dermatitis, it is called a differential diagnosis — not a mistake. A differential diagnosis
What are the symptoms of PRP? Read More »
How is PRP Diagnosed? The rendering of an “official” diagnosis of pityriasis rubra pilaris requires two elements: clinical observation AND a biopsy that “supports” a diagnosis of PRP. Clinical observations of a trained dermatologist When a yet-to-be diagnosed PRP patient is seen by a dermatologist, the scope of the symptoms may vary from a small
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