Airborn Contact Dermatitis?

The patient is an 83 yo woman who has had a recurring pruritic dermatitis located mostly on face, neck and upper chest for two years.  It seems to be more prominent seasonally.  She has a history of a lymphoma ~ five years ago.  She had alopecia universalis for many years that spontaneously remitted ~ two years ago.

O/E:  Florid erythema of face and neck.  Submental area does not appear to be spared.

This woman has a somewhat "leonine" facies.

Diagnosis:  Initially, I thought she had a contact dermatitis or the "red face syndrome" from overuse of topical corticosteroids. She has been off the latter for > 1 year.  The has needed prednisone to control this; but I prefer a long-term medication with less side-effects.  Given her history of lymphoma, further evaluation may be necessary.


References:

Azathioprine versus betamethasone for the treatment of parthenium dermatitis: a randomized controlled study.

Verma KK1, Mahesh R, Srivastava P, Ramam M, Mukhopadhyaya AK.

Indian J Dermatol Venereol Leprol. 2008 Sep-Oct;74(5):453-7

Author information: prokverma@hotmail.com

Abstract

CONCLUSIONS: Azathioprine and betamethasone appear to be almost equally effective (P=0.0156 vs. 0.0005) in the treatment of parthenium dermatitis. However, adverse effects and relapses were observed to be more frequent in patients treated with betamethasone. Free Full Text

Postiive Band-Aid Sign

The patient is a 77 y.o. man who presented with a number of skin lesions.  He has a past history of non-melanoma skin cancer.

The lesion in question has been present for a few months.  It is an almost 5 cm in diameter exophytic tumor.

Diagnosis:  Probable Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

I anesthetized the lesion and shaved it off.  There was a fair amount of bleeding.  I curretted it and cautrized the base. It was not as soft as a typical SCC or BCC.  Specimen submitted and I'll attach a follow-up with the path.

Pathology:  Well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma

This is a particularly good example of the "Positive-Band Aid" sign.  Most of us know this, but it has not been well-reported in the literature.  We presented this sign on the VGRD Blog in 2007.

The Tortured Tube

The patient is a 25 yo man with a 4 mo hx of an eyelid dermatitis.  His mother, a health professional, gave him 0.1% triamcinalone oinment to apply ~ 2 months ago.  It has run out and he came in for an appointment.  He is healthy and has a history of atopic dermatitis that is now quiescent.

Diagnosis and Discussion: I think this is an example of "steroid acne."  It's hard to tell what preceded it.  Most topical corticosteroids when applied for weeks or more to thin skin such as is seen on the face (expecially eyelids or around the mouth) or the genitalia can cause this.  It's a type of steroid addiction.

The standard treatment is to stop the topical steroid, apply cold compresses two time a day and doxycycline 100 mg b.i.d. for a month or more.  The longer this has been going on, the harder it is to treat.

Reference:  Dr. Ken Fowler and I reported a similar patient in 2001.

Tortured tube" sign. Fowler KP, Elpern DJ.  West J Med. 2001 Jun;174(6):383-4. Free FullText Online.

Linear Pruritic Lesions

Dr. Yogesh Jain would appreciate your comments about the following patient:

18 year old man with no significant past medical history, presented with these lesions to the OPD.  He revealed that he has been having such lesions ever since he was 2 years of age. These excoriative lesions are very itchy, but not painful. They extends from the left groin till the medial malleolus in a continous pattern. And also involve the left arm in a similar fashion affecting the palm as well. He is not on any medications.   There are no other systemic positive finding.

Dermatitis Neglecta

The patient is a 15 yo boy with a three month history of a dermatosis of his cheeks.

O/E: Slightly greenish symmetrical dermatosis of cheeks.  Othewise, normal.

Photos taken by patient's mother and emailed to me.

Dermatoscopic images before and after area was cleansed with an alcohol pledget.

Diagnosis:  Dermatitis Neglecta

There are no descriptions of the dermatoscopic appearance of this disorder.

Laugier Hunziker syndrome

The patient is a 74 yo man with a long history of oral hyperpigmentation.  He was presented on VGRD in 2012, but we have further history now.  The pigmentation has been present many years. His mother had a similar process by history.

He has a history of colon polyps. His paternal grandmother had colon cancer. His mother had colonic polyps and breast cancer. His father and his father’s brother both had leukemia.

O/E:  There are multiple dark brown irregular lenticular hyperpigmented macules of 2–5 mm diameteron the lower lip ant tongue.  No other hyperpigmentation was noted.

Clinical Image:

Diagnosis: Laugier Hunziker syndrome vs Peutz Jeghers syndrome

Case to be discussed at Hot Spots 2016

References:

1. Laugier–Hunziker Syndrome: A Rare Cause of Oral and Acral Pigmentation

Silonie Sachdeva, Shabina Sachdeva, and Pranav Kapoor

J Cutan Aesthet Surg. 2011 Jan-Apr; 4(1): 58–60.

Abstract: Laugier–Hunziker syndrome (LHS) is an acquired, benign pigmentary skin condition involving oral cavity including lower lip in the form of brown black macules 1–5 mm in size, frequently associated with longitudinal melanonychia. There is no underlying systemic abnormality or malignant predisposition associated with LHS, and therefore the prognosis is good. Important differential diagnoses include Peutz Jeghers syndrome and Addison’s disease among other causes of oral and acral pigmentation.  PubMed Central.

Annular Lesions in a 50 yo woman

This image was sent by Dr. Yogesh Jain from India for diagnostic suggestions.
The only history provided was that the process is present on the hands and feet and has been ongoing for 25 years. The lesions regress after a number of months.

Other than a variant of granuloma annulare or elastosis perforans serpiginosa, what are your thoughts?

Biopsy is important but so is the dermatopathologist who reads it.