A Case of Pyoderma Gangrenosum Associated with Ulcerative Colitis

ABSTRACT

Ulcerative colitis is associated with various extraintestinal manifestations. Skin lesions can occur in 9-19% of patients with ulcerative colitis. Pyoderma gangrenosum is the most severe dermatologic complication that is associated with ulcerative colitis. It is a painful, chronic ulcerating skin disease of unknown cause. The lesions usually appear on the pretibial area, but may also be found elsewhere. Diagnosis is clinical as there are no accepted histological diagnostic criteria. Systemic steroid therapy remains the treatment of choice in most patients, but various other agents have been used with occasional success including topical antibiotics, cyclosporine and infliximab. We experienced a case of pyoderma gangrenosum that developed on both pretibial areas in a 41-year-old female patient with active ulcerative colitis. The patient was treated with a corticosteroid and sulfasalazine. We report this case with a review of the literature.