Arab Board Dermatology Part 1 study guide
Arab Board Dermatology Part 1 · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Arab Board of Dermatology Part 1 is the written, theory-based first stage of the Arab Board specialty certification in dermatology, taken by physicians who have entered an accredited dermatology residency training programme and are working toward specialist recognition in the region. It is a knowledge examination: it tests the scientific foundation of the specialty rather than bedside technique, and candidates should expect to reason across basic and clinical sciences, dermatopathology and diagnostic methods, inflammatory dermatoses, cutaneous infections, immunodermatology, pigmentary and hair and nail disorders, paediatric dermatology and genodermatoses, skin tumours, surgery and lasers, contact and photo-dermatology, and dermatologic therapeutics and drug reactions. The Arab Board Dermatology Part 1 study guide has 11 sections and about 2,541 words.
01Basic and Clinical Sciences Relevant to Dermatology
You must be fluent in the layered anatomy of skin (epidermis, dermis, subcutis), the keratinocyte maturation sequence, and the cell types resident in each compartment (melanocytes, Langerhans cells, Merkel cells, mast cells, fibroblasts). Immunology is heavily weighted: antigen presentation, Th1/Th2/Th17 balance, cytokine families, complement pathways, and the difference between type I–IV hypersensitivity.
251 words, about 1 min02Dermatopathology and Diagnostic Techniques
You need a systematic approach to H&E interpretation: low-power architecture (epidermal contour, dermal infiltrate pattern - perivascular, interstitial, nodular, lichenoid, psoriasiform, spongiotic) before high-power cytology. Learn the vocabulary of epidermal change (acanthosis, hyperkeratosis, parakeratosis, spongiosis, exocytosis), dermal change (collagen alteration, mucin, necrosis), and infiltrate composition (neutrophils, eosinophils, plasma cells, atypical lymphocytes).
246 words, about 1 min03Inflammatory and Papulosquamous Dermatoses
This domain rewards pattern recognition plus mechanism. For eczema , know the atopic march, filaggrin loss-of-function, barrier dysfunction, and the acute (spongiotic, vesicular) versus chronic (lichenified) phases.
257 words, about 1 min04Cutaneous Infections and Infestations
Expect questions across bacterial (impetigo, cellulitis, erysipelas, folliculitis, staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome, erythrasma), viral (herpes simplex, varicella-zoster, HPV, molluscum, measles), fungal (dermatophytes, Malassezia, Candida, deep mycoses), mycobacterial (tuberculosis, leprosy spectrum), parasitic (scabies, lice, leishmaniasis), and sexually transmitted infections (syphilis stages, gonorrhoea, chlamydia, HSV, HPV). Organism–lesion correlation : dermatophytes cause annular scaly plaques with central clearing; Candida favours moist intertriginous sites; Malassezia causes pityriasis versicolor with hypopigmentation.
232 words, about 1 min05Immunodermatology and Connective Tissue Diseases
Organise autoimmune bullous disease by level of split and immunofluorescence pattern . Pemphigus vulgaris: intraepidermal, suprabasal, intercellular IgG (net-like) on direct immunofluorescence, anti-desmoglein 3 (and 1).
209 words, about 1 min06Pigmentary, Hair, Nail, and Sweat Gland Disorders
Understand melanocyte biology: melanin synthesis, transfer via melanosomes, and the difference between melanocyte number and activity . Vitiligo is autoimmune melanocyte destruction with sharply demarcated depigmentation; Wood's lamp enhances.
223 words, about 1 min07Pediatric Dermatology and Genodermatoses
Neonatal skin has immature barrier function, higher surface-area-to-weight ratio (affecting topical drug absorption), and distinct eruption patterns. Know transient neonatal eruptions (erythema toxicum neonatorum, milia, sebaceous hyperplasia, neonatal cephalic pustulosis), atopic dermatitis with its age-related distribution, nappy rash vs candidiasis, and vascular anomalies (infantile haemangioma versus vascular malformation).
212 words, about 1 min08Skin Tumors and Cutaneous Oncology
Separate benign, premalignant, and malignant lesions and know the pathway for each. Basal cell carcinoma (BCC): pearly, telangiectatic, slow-growing, rarely metastasises.
214 words, about 1 min09Dermatologic Surgery, Lasers, and Cosmetic Dermatology
Know excisional techniques (elliptical excision with 3:1 length-to-width ratio, fusiform shape, relaxed skin tension lines), closure types (primary, secondary, flaps, grafts), and haemostasis. Understand anaesthesia (lidocaine with adrenaline, maximum doses, digital precautions), suture selection, and wound care.
239 words, about 1 min10Contact Dermatitis, Occupational Dermatology, and Photodermatology
Distinguish irritant (direct toxicity, no prior sensitisation, burning, sharply demarcated) from allergic (type IV delayed hypersensitivity, requires sensitisation, itching, spreading, eczematous). Common allergens: nickel, cobalt, chromate, fragrances, preservatives (methylisothiazolinone), rubber accelerators, paraphenylenediamine in hair dye, and topical medicaments.
247 words, about 1 min11Dermatologic Therapeutics and Systemic Drug Reactions
Know mechanisms, monitoring, and major adverse effects of core drugs: topical corticosteroids (potency classes, tachyphylaxis, atrophy), calcineurin inhibitors, methotrexate (folate antagonist; monitor liver and marrow; folic acid supplementation), azathioprine (TPMT deficiency), cyclosporine (nephrotoxicity, hypertension), dapsone (G6PD deficiency, methaemoglobinaemia), isotretinoin (teratogenicity, mucocutaneous effects, monitoring), antibiotics, and biologics (TNF inhibitors and infection/reactivation risk, IL-17 and IL-23 inhibitors). Learn the severe cutaneous adverse reactions: Stevens–Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis (epidermal detachment, Nikolsky positive, mucosal involvement), drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (fever, rash, eosinophilia, organ involvement, HHV-6 reactivation), and acute generalised exanthematous pustulosis (pustules, neutrophilia).
211 words, about 1 min