Idiopathic perniosis presenting as acral purpuric lesions: Clustering of cases before COVID-19 pandemic and their comparison with chilblain like lesions reported in the literature.

ABSTRACT

Perniosis/chilblains are the acral inflammatory skin lesions developing in susceptible individuals as an abnormal reaction to cold. In the absence of a discernible cause, it is labeled as idiopathic perniosis (IP). With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, there was an upsurge of reports of chilblain like lesions (CLL) especially in young patients possibly implicated to the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Twelve clinically suspected and histopathologically confirmed cases of IP seen from November 2019 through February 2020 were retrospectively recruited. Clinical, dermoscopic, and histopathological characteristics of these were reviewed and compared with CLL reported in the literature. Mean age of patients was 26.58 ± 15.18 years with an equal male to female ratio. Characteristic histopathology findings were spongiosis (100%), dermal edema (100%), perivascular lymphocytic infiltrate (100%) with peri-eccrine accentuation (66.7%), keratinocyte necrosis (50%), focal basal vacuolar damage (58.3%), and lymphocytic vasculitis (58.3%). Significant dermoscopy findings were variable background color ranging from dull red and violaceous to copper red and brown orange, coiled vessels (44.4%) and orange-red structureless areas (63.9%). Lesions over palms and soles preferentially had white dots/clods and lines (38.9%). There appears no exclusive histopathological as well as dermoscopy features of CLL and IP, yet certain clues can be appreciated. Keratinocyte necrosis and severe dermal edema favors IP, whereas fibrin thrombi with involvement of both superficial and deep dermal vessels favor CLL. Dermoscopically presence of irregular, linear or branching vessels, red/purple dots and clods and gray brown reticule supports CLL while white dots/clods and lines supports IP.