Main description:

This extensively revised new edition provides a quick study and reference guide for physicians who treat patients with autoimmune bullous diseases (AIBDs), the most life-threatening inflammatory diseases of the skin. AIBDs are rare, comprising less than 1% of the dermatological patients and as such, they are often given little focus in general dermatology literature, despite being complicated and demanding diseases to manage. Chapters cover the latest developments in diagnostic assays and the use of pemphigoids. New contributions include how AIBD affects children and the care of wounds in instances of blistering disease from the perspective of a nurse practitioner.

Autoimmune Bullous Diseases: Text and Review is written in a direct and simple style with tables and figures to illustrate this difficult field practically. At the end of each chapter the reader is challenged to check the learned matter with multiple-choice questions, while it contains protocols and follows international guidelines, making it suitable study material for courses on autoimmune bullous diseases. Residents and researchers in dermatology and adjacent disciplines will find this book useful as a quick guide when dealing with these patients.

Contents:

Basic Principles of the Immune System and AutoimmunityDermatological examination of bullous diseasesHow to take a biopsyDirect Immunofluorescence MicroscopyIndirect Immunofluorescence MicroscopyImmuno-assaysStructure of DesmosomesPemphigus vulgarisPemphigus foliaceusParaneoplastic pemphigusIgA PemphigusDrug-induced pemphigusStructure of hemidesmosomes and the epidermal basement membrane zonePemphigoid Diseases Affecting the SkinMucous membrane pemphigoidEpidermolysis bullosa acquisitaBullous systemic lupus erythematosusLinear IgA bullous dermatosisDrug-induced Pemphigoid and Linear IgA DiseaseDermatitis herpetiformisStevens Johnson syndrome / toxic epidermal necrolysis and erythema exsudativum multiformePorphyria Cutanea Tarda and Pseudoporphyria Bullous dermatitis artefactaAutoimmune bullous diseases in childhood Wound care in autoimmune bullous diseases Appendix: Patient support groups and international centers for AIBD