Treatment of folliculitis decalvans using intensity-modulated radiation via tomotherapy.

BACKGROUND: Folliculitis decalvans (FD) is a form of primary neutrophilic scarring alopecia that is characterized clinically by chronic suppurative folliculitis and often associated with pruritus or even pain. Treatment of FD is often difficult. Herein, we report a case of recalcitrant and painful folliculitis decalvans refractory to antibiotic and anti-inflammatory therapies, which was successfully treated by intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in order to irreversibly eliminate hair follicles that prove to be one etiological trigger. CASE PRESENTATION: A 45-year-old male patient with a refractory FD presented with a crusting suppurative folliculitis and atrophic scarring patches on the scalp associated with pain and pruritus. We attempted relief of symptoms by reducing scalp inflammation and eliminating hair follicles through radiation. We delivered 11.0 Gy in two radiation series using tomotherapy, 5.0 Gy in 5 equivalent fractions as a first radiation course. The symptoms markedly decreased but did not totally disappear. Therefore, we delivered a second radiation series 4 months later with an additional 6 Gy. This led to almost complete epilation on the scalp and abolished pain and pruritus on the capillitium. The patient was regularly followed up until 26 months after radiotherapy. Draining lesions or exudation did not recur. He only experienced discrete hair regrowth in the occipital region with folliculitis 12 months after radiotherapy. These residual lesions are currently treated with laser epilation therapy. CONCLUSION: A radical approach to eliminating hair follicles by repeated radiation therapy may induce lasting relief of symptoms in chronic suppurative FD associated with persistent trichodynia.

Radiation induced cutaneous ulcer on the back in a patient with congenital anomaly of the upper cava system.

Recent years have seen the introduction of a number of additive diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in invasive cardiology. Cardiac catheterization procedures using fluoroscopy reduce patient morbidity and mortality compared to conventional surgical interventions. The associated radiation exposure for the patient is, however, often underestimated, while implantation of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) and/or implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) pacemaker systems sometimes entails even higher radiation exposures due to prolonged fluoroscopic studies. Radiation induced skin injuries including ulceration are mainly dose dependent effects of ionizing radiation and can be acute, subacute or chronic. The time between radiation exposure and manifestation of skin injuries varies greatly, from a few days up to months or even years. We report a 54-year-old male patient who presented to the Department of Dermatology in the year 2006, with erythema in the interscapular area associated with occasional pruritus. His medical report included several diagnostic cardiac catheterization procedures. Several attempts to implant CRT and ICD had failed owing to an undetected congenital anomaly of the upper vena cava system; these attempts had entailed prolonged fluoroscopy. The patient's history, clinical presentation and histopathological findings finally led to the diagnosis of radiation induced cutaneous ulcer.