Fox Fordyce disease: a side effect of laser therapy.

Fox-Fordyce disease (FFD) is an uncommon apocrine disorder. We reported a 26-year-old woman with bilateral axillary pruritic papular lesions following 2 sessions of treatment with Diode (800 nm) laser for axillary hair removal. No lesions were developed in the other treated areas. Topical 0.1% tacrolimus gel was used for her treatment.

Fox-Fordyce Disease: An under-diagnosed adverse event of laser hair removal?

BACKGROUND: Fox-Fordyce Disease (FFD) is a rare chronic inflammatory skin disease of the apocrine glands, mainly affecting post-pubertal women. It involves apocrine gland-bearing areas including the axilla, areola, anogenital area and umbilicus. FFD induced by laser hair removal is a newly reported entity of unknown pathogenesis. To the best of our knowledge, there are only four reported cases in the literature describing a total of four patients. OBJECTIVES: We are reporting the first case series of laser-induced FFD with a histopathological and clinical evaluation of the reported cases. METHODS: A review of the available literature to date about laser-induced FFD was performed. Clinical and histopathological features were reviewed. RESULTS: In our case series, the clinical and histological appearance of FFD following laser hair removal is similar to that of classic FFD. Exacerbating factors were present in two patients, and were similar to that of classic FFD. The main histopathological features included dilatation of the follicular infundibulum, follicular hyperkeratosis, dyskeratosis in the follicular infundibulum, periductal lymphohistiocytic infiltrate and perifollicular fibrosis. Two of the four reported cases as well as one of our patients had no perifollicular xanthomatous inflammation, a hallmark feature of classic FFD. Mast cells were absent in all reported cases, as well as in our patients. CONCLUSION: We believe that laser-induced FFD is under-diagnosed as a newly reported adverse event of laser hair removal. It is clinically and histopathologically similar to classic FFD.

Fox Fordyce disease as a secondary effect of laser hair removal.

Fox Fordyce disease (FFD) has been recently described as an adverse effect of laser hair removal. It is an apocrine gland disorder characterized by pruritus and a folliculocentric papular eruption in apocrine sweat gland areas. Different etiologies have been proposed to be the cause of this entity. It has been suggested that a fisical factor could contribute to FFD phatogenesis. We report a new case of FFD after laser hair removal.

Fox-Fordyce-like disease following laser hair removal appearing on all treated areas.

Fox-Fordyce disease is an uncommon inflammatory disease of the apocrine sweat glands. Two recent reports indicated laser hair removal as a novel cause of axillary Fox-Fordyce disease. We report the first case of Fox-Fordyce disease developing in women after completing treatment with a depilatory hair laser appearing in the axillae, umbilicus, and pubis. We describe a case of Fox-Fordyce disease that developed in a 27-year-old woman 3 months after she had completed two LightSheer Diode laser treatments of her axilla, periumbilical region, and bikini area. Clinical and histopathological changes are as well detailed. Laser therapy induces damage to follicular infundibulum, resulting in altered maturation of keratinocytes which led to keratin plugging causing the common pathologic features in Fox-Fordyce disease. Differences in the physiologic features of the anatomic sites, in the susceptibility to laser-induced injury among these areas, or additional factors may contribute to Fox-Fordyce disease.

Fox-Fordyce disease following axillary laser hair removal.

BACKGROUND: Fox-Fordyce disease (FFD) is a relatively rare entity with a typical clinical presentation. Numerous studies have described unifying histopathological features of FFD, which together suggest a defect in the follicular infundibulum resulting in follicular dilation with keratin plugging, subsequent apocrine duct obstruction, and apocrine gland dilation, with eventual extravasation of the apocrine secretions as the primary histopathogenic events in the evolution of the disease. OBSERVATIONS: We describe a case of FFD that developed in a 41-year-old woman 3 months after completing a series of axillary laser hair removal treatments, and we detail the clinical and histopathological changes typical for FFD. CONCLUSION: Because defective infundibular maturation has been suggested to play a central role in the evolution of FFD, the close temporal relationship of laser hair therapy with the development of FFD suggests a causal role, which we continue to explore.

Apoeccrine sweat duct obstruction as a cause for Fox-Fordyce disease.

The pathogenesis of Fox-Fordyce disease has been reported to be hyperkeratosis and obstruction of the upper hair follicle, where the duct of the apocrine sweat gland opens. We report a case of Fox-Fordyce disease with full clinical manifestation. It appeared to be caused by the obstruction of intraepidermal apoeccrine sweat ducts by apoeccrine secretory cells detached and released from the secretory epithelium. A 24-year-old woman visited our clinic with intensely pruritic papules on axillae, mammary areolae, and pubic areas. Histopathologic examination revealed an obstruction of the sweat duct in the epidermis, which opened directly to the skin surface. The closing substance of the duct was an aggregate of epithelial cells, probably derived from the secretory portion. In the dermis, the secretory cells of apocrinelike sweat glands had been detaching from the secretory epithelia. These findings suggest that Fox-Fordyce disease can occur by the mechanism in which apoeccrine secretory cells obstruct sweat ducts.

Fordyce nodules in a buccal membrane graft to the ocular surface.

PURPOSE: To present a case of epibulbar Fordyce nodules, with a referral diagnosis of primary tumor. METHODS: Case report. RESULTS: A 38-year-old woman was referred for ocular oncology consultation because of a conjunctival lesion in the right eye. She had had a buccal mucous graft to treat recurrent pterygium 18 years earlier. The lesion consisted of multiple small, yellow granules over a pink, thickened mucosa from the 12 to 3 o'clock meridians. Excisional biopsy revealed multiple subepithelial sebaceous glands consistent with Fordyce nodules. CONCLUSIONS: Fordyce nodules are a possible late benign complication of buccal mucous grafts.