Differences in Diagnosis and Treatment of Nipple Conditions of Reproductive-Age Women at a Tertiary Health System.

Background: Nipple-areolar complex (NAC) conditions affect reproductive-age women, yet it is not known how care of NAC complaints is distributed among medical specialties. There is a need to characterize all NAC conditions, including their treatment and the care team involved in their clinical management, of nonlactating and lactating patients to determine care gaps. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of reproductive-age females who presented to a large tertiary health system with an NAC complaint between 2015 and 2020. Data about the symptoms, diagnosis, specialty providing care, diagnostic considerations, and treatments were collected. Results: Nipple pain, dermatitis, and thrush were the most common diagnoses among 407 encounters (215 patients). Lactating patients represented half (204, 50%) of the study sample. Benign breast conditions like obstructed ductal openings, accessory nipples, nipple growth, inverted nipples, and chronic and bacterial infections represented a third of all encounters. Primary care physicians (167, 41%) and obstetricians (105, 26%) provided most of the care and referred a third and quarter of patients, respectively, to another provider. Conclusion: The care of patients with NAC complaints is not limited to obstetricians. Internal medicine, family medicine, emergency medicine, and obstetrician-gynecology, dermatology, and surgery resident physicians should receive training in benign breast conditions and clinical lactation.

Localized alopecic myxedema of the scalp.

Myxedema is a rare, cutaneous complication of autoimmune thyroid diseases that most often affects the anterior shins. Herein, we report a patient with a history of Graves disease and Hashimoto thyroiditis who presented with boggy, alopecic patches associated with scalp pruritus. Punch biopsies from these lesions showed increased interstitial mucin in the reticular dermis, consistent with localized myxedema. This report showcases a rare presentation of localized myxedema of the scalp, highlighting the diverse cutaneous manifestations of autoimmune thyroid diseases.

When a travel bug gets you down: severe, hypotensive African tick bite fever and response to therapy.

African tick bite fever, resulting from Rickettsia africae inoculation, is endemic in sub-Saharan Africa. We present a United States traveler with African tick bite fever 5 days after she returned from a mission trip to Zimbabwe. The patient exhibited symptomatic hypotension in addition to more typical findings, including fever, fatigue, and a necrotic eschar. The diagnosis was supported by histopathological findings and the patient's symptoms rapidly resolved with oral doxycycline therapy. We believe this case represents the first African tick bite fever diagnosis associated with symptomatic hypotension. This case additionally serves as a reminder of the importance of evaluating patient travel history.

Pruritic papules after induction chemotherapy with daunorubicin and cytarabine.

We present a 65-year-old woman who developed a diffuse pruritic papular eruption after receiving induction chemotherapy with daunorubicin and cytarabine for newly diagnosed acute myelomonocytic leukemia. The rash improved clinically with triamcinolone treatment and chemotherapy was allowed to continue. This case adds to the growing literature of transient acantholytic dermatosis development in the setting of anti-cancer therapy and emphasizes the importance of clinicopathologic correlation in cutaneous eruptions in cancer patients.

Undermining during cutaneous wound closure for wounds less than 3 cm in diameter: a randomized split wound comparative effectiveness trial.

Undermining is thought to improve wound outcomes; however, randomized controlled data regarding its efficacy are lacking in humans. The objective of this randomized clinical trial was to determine whether undermining low to moderate tension wounds improves scar cosmesis compared to wound closure without undermining. Fifty-four patients, 18 years or older, undergoing primary linear closure of a cutaneous defect with predicted postoperative closure length of ≥ 3 cm on any anatomic site were screened. Four patients were excluded, 50 patients were enrolled, and 48 patients were seen in follow-up. Wounds were divided in half and one side was randomized to receive either no undermining or 2 cm of undermining. The other side received the unselected intervention. Three months, patients and 2 masked observers evaluated each scar using the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS). A total of 50 patients [mean (SD) age, 67.6 (11.5) years; 31 (64.6%) male; 48 (100%) white] were enrolled in the study. The mean (SD) sum of the POSAS observer component scores was 12.0 (6.05) for the undermined side and 11.1 (4.68) for the non-undermined side (P = .60). No statistically significant difference was found in the mean (SD) sum of the patient component for the POSAS score between the undermined side [15.9 (9.07)] and the non-undermined side [13.33 (6.20)] at 3 months. For wounds under low to moderate perceived tension, no statistically significant differences in scar outcome or total complications were noted between undermined wound halves and non-undermined halves.Trail Registry: Clinical trials.gov Identifier NCT02289859. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02289859 .

Characteristics of patients with juvenile dermatomyositis from 2001-2021 at a tertiary care center.

BACKGROUND: Juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM) is the most common inflammatory myopathy in the pediatric population and can represent a medical emergency. However, many features of JDM remain poorly understood, disease presentation is highly variable, and predictors of disease course have yet to be identified. METHODS: This retrospective chart review included 47 JDM patients seen at a tertiary care center over a 20-year period. Characteristics such as demographics, clinical signs and symptoms, antibody positivity, dermatopathology features, and treatments were recorded. RESULTS: All patients had evidence of cutaneous involvement, whereas 88.4% experienced muscle weakness. Constitutional symptoms and dysphagia were commonly present. The most frequent cutaneous findings were Gottron papules, heliotrope rash, and nailfold changes. Anti-TIF1? was the most prevalent myositis-specific autoantibody. Management involved systemic corticosteroids in nearly all cases. Strikingly, the dermatology department was only involved in the care of four in every ten (19/47) patients. CONCLUSIONS: Prompt recognition of the strikingly reproducible skin findings present in JDM can improve disease outcomes in this population. This study highlights the need for increased education of such pathognomonic findings as well as more multidisciplinary care. In particular, a dermatologist should be involved in the care of patients presenting with muscle weakness and skin changes.

Anti-MDA-5 negative, anti-Ku positive clinically amyopathic dermatomyositis.

We present a patient with anti-MDA5 negative, anti-Ku positive clinically amyopathic dermatomyositis (CADM). A 61-year-old woman presented with a chief complaint of a 20-year history of a pruritic rash that was active on her face, chest, hands, legs, and back. A mildly scaly, erythematous, photo-distributed eruption along with slightly violaceous, scaly papules accentuated on the wrist, metacarpophalangeal joints, proximal interphalangeal and distal interphalangeal joints. Antibody profile was significant for positive ANA and anti-dsDNA, elevated anti-TIF-1gamma (RDL)/p155, and weakly positive anti Ku. Biopsy was consistent with dermatomyositis. Melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 antibody (anti-MDA-5) has been identified as the most commonly associated autoantibody found in CADM and is associated with poor prognosis and a biomarker for the diagnosis of rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease. To our knowledge, our patient is the first case of negative anti-MDA-5 and anti-Ku positive CADM.

Livedo racemosa secondary to hyaluronic acid injection.

Iatrogenic vascular occlusion secondary to filler injection, such as with hyaluronic acid, is a known but rare, entity. It typically occurs in the setting of facial cosmetic procedures but has also been described in the setting of osteoarthritis. We present a patient with ankle osteoarthritis who developed an asymmetric, reticular, livedoid eruption after intraarticular injection with hyaluronic acid. She was diagnosed with livedo racemosa secondary to vascular occlusion and placed on low molecular weight heparin. Later, a transition to low-dose daily aspirin maintained the improvement.

Pink verrucous plaque in a man with systemic mastocytosis.

Porokeratosis ptychotropica is a rare and commonly misdiagnosed subtype of porokeratosis involving the body folds. We present a 53-year-old man with systemic mastocytosis who presented with a pruritic, verrucous plaque in the gluteal fold that showed multiple cornoid lamellae on histopathologic evaluation, diagnostic of porokeratosis ptychotropica. Various treatments have been reported, including topical corticosteroids, retinoids, vitamin D analogs, calcineurin inhibitors, imiquimod, phototherapy, cryotherapy, or ablative laser therapy, but recurrences are common.

Eosinophilic fasciitis presenting as a unilateral, solitary plaque.

Eosinophilic fasciitis is a rare connective tissue disorder characterized by inflammation of the fascia that leads to painful, indurated skin. Because of its variable clinical presentation and overlap with conditions, such as morphea, the diagnosis of eosinophilic fasciitis can be challenging and relies on clinical presentation, histopathologic and laboratory analysis, and response to therapy. Herein, we present an unusual, solitary, isolated plaque with pathologic features and response to therapy most consistent with eosinophilic fasciitis.

Clinical significance of autoantibodies in dermatomyositis and systemic sclerosis.

Autoimmune connective tissue diseases, including dermatomyositis and systemic sclerosis, have a heterogeneous clinical presentation and prognosis; moreover, their clinical features are often incomplete and overlap with other rheumatic disorders, which can make diagnosis and prognostic stratification challenging. Specific autoantibodies have been associated with certain clinical findings as well as prognostic implications, and many new associations have been made over the last decade. Although patient populations manifest considerable heterogeneity, autoantibodies can be used to help predict clinical features, prognosis, and response to therapy. In this review, the clinical and prognostic implications associated with disease-specific autoantibodies in dermatomyositis and scleroderma are summarized with an emphasis on how the clinician can use this information for patient care.

Debilitating erosive lichenoid interface dermatitis from checkpoint inhibitor therapy.

As the list of anti-tumor immunotherapy agents and the list of cancers treated by these novel agents grow, a subset of patients are experiencing immune-related adverse events as a result of prolonged stimulation of the immune system. Many different immune related adverse events including colitis, hepatitis, pneumonitis, thyroiditis, hypophysitis, and cutaneous reactions can result from blocking these inhibitory pathways. The full spectrum of cutaneous immune related adverse events secondary to checkpoint inhibitor therapy is still being defined. The reported varied presentations include lichenoid reactions and bullous pemphigoid, amongst others. We present a severe cutaneous reaction, a case of debilitating erosive lichenoid dermatitis. This case emphasizes both the wide range of possible cutaneous reactions and the potential severity of these reactions.