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.

Basic Principles of the Immune System and Autoimmunity

Dermatological examination of bullous diseases
How to take a biopsy
Direct Immunofluorescence Microscopy
Indirect Immunofluorescence Microscopy
Immuno-assays
Structure of Desmosomes
Pemphigus vulgaris
Pemphigus foliaceus
Paraneoplastic pemphigus
IgA Pemphigus
Drug-induced pemphigus
Structure of hemidesmosomes and the epidermal basement membrane zone
Pemphigoid Diseases Affecting the Skin
Mucous membrane pemphigoid
Epidermolysis bullosa acquisita
Bullous systemic lupus erythematosus
Linear IgA bullous dermatosis
Drug-induced Pemphigoid and Linear IgA Disease
Dermatitis herpetiformis
Stevens Johnson syndrome / toxic epidermal necrolysis and erythema exsudativum multiforme
Porphyria Cutanea Tarda and Pseudoporphyria
Bullous dermatitis artefacta
Autoimmune bullous diseases in childhood
Wound care in autoimmune bullous diseases
Appendix: Patient support groups and international centers for AIBD.<br>