A Case of Churg-Strauss Syndrome Showing Severe Skin Necrosis / 대한피부과학회지

Churg-Strauss syndrome is a disorder characterized by asthma, fever, systemic vasculitis, extravascular granulomas and hypereosinophilia. A 70-year-old woman with a 2-year history of bronchial asthma was admitted to hospital, due to extensive hemorrhagic bullae embedded in necrotic tissue on both extremities, the buttocks and trunk. The patient showed abnormal laboratory findings including significant peripheral blood eosinophilia and p-ANCA (+), and histopathologically leukocytoclastic vasculitits with marked eosinophlilic infiltration. Based on the clinical course, laboratory data and pathologic findings, the diagnosis of Churg-Strauss syndrome was made. Treatment with oral prednisolone was started, and the clinical findings improved.

A Case of Giant Basal Cell Carcinoma / 대한피부과학회지

Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) represents the most common cutaneous malignancy in caucasions. Most of the tumors usually occur on sun-exposed skin, and they are small and easily treated. Giant BCC is a rare variant of this tumor and is defined as a lesion greater than 5 cm at its largest diameter. For the development of giant BCC, several risk factors, including patient neglect, aggressive histological features and long duration, have been identified. We observed a very large BCC on the face and scalp of an elderly woman. She had been reclusive for a long time, and this problem might have played a crucial role in the development of the giant BCC.

A Case of Poroma with Features of Hidroacanthoma Simplex and Dermal Duct Tumor / 대한피부과학회지

Hidroacanthoma simplex, eccrine poroma and dermal duct tumors have recently come to be viewed as variants of benign poroid neoplasia, due to their similar histopathologic and cytologic features. Some authors have reported the association of two or three of these tumors in a single lesion. We herein report a patient with two subtypes of poroma in a single lesion.

Concordance Rate Between Clinical Impression and Pathologic Diagnosis in Dermatologic Skin Biopsy / 대한피부과학회지

BACKGROUND: Skin Biopsy is a equently used diagnostic tool in dermatology and clinical impressions before biopsy may be different with pathologic diagnosis. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to investigate the concordance rate of clinical impression and pathologic diagnosis. METHODS: Clinical and Pathological studies were done on 559 biopsied skin diseases among 16, 944 out-patients in Dermatologic department of Chungnam University Hospital during the period of 1 year from March, 2002 to February, 2003. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The study results are summarized as follows: 1. The most frequently biopsied skin disease group was non-tumor, noninfectious disease (40.8%), followed by benign tumor (37.4%), infectious disease (11.8%), malignant tumor (10.0%). 2. The concordance rate between clinical impression and pathologic diagnosis showed 68.9% in complete agreement and 79.6% in complete and partial agreement. 3. The concordance rate of professor committed cases was 68.8% and that of residents committed cases was 69.1%. 4. The concordance rates among disease groups were highest in malignant tumor (74.6%), then benign tumor (70.8%), non-tumor infectious disease (67.4%) and non-tumor noninfectious disease (65.2%).

A Case of Central Retinal Artery Occlusion Associated with Chickenpox / 대한피부과학회지

Chickenpox (varicella) is caused by the varicella zoster virus and can be associated with noncutaneous complications, including encephalitis, pneumonitis, and ocular disease. Previously described ocular complications resulting from chickenpox were conjunctival and corneal lesions, iridocyclitis, glaucoma, chorioretinitis, and optic nerve lesions. Most of the reported cases were anterior uveitis with self-limited disease course and patients usually recovered good vision or had but a partial visual defect. We treated a patient who developed permanent visual loss after chickenpox. A 24-year-old female who developed the typical rash of chickenpox four days before she complained of a sudden loss of vision in her left eye. The exact cause of central retinal artery occlusion in our patient is not known, but its coincidence with chickenpox is interesting.

A Case of Keratolytic Winter Erythema / 대한피부과학회지

Keratolytic winter erythema is an autosomal dominant skin disorder of unknown etiology. It is charaterised by cyclical erythema, hyperkeratosis, and peeling of the skin of the palms and soles, arresting at major skin creases. The symptoms are noticeable during winter. We present clinical and histological data of a 22-year-old male with the attributes of keratolytic winter erythema.