Coinfection with Leprosy and Tuberculosis: A Case Series in Malagasy Patients.

Background: Leprosy and tuberculosis are two of the oldest and most common mycobacterial infections, caused by Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacteium lepramatosis for leprosy and Mycobacterium tuberculosis for tuberculosis. Dual infections have been known since ancient times; however, cases remain rarely reported in the literature, even in countries where both diseases are endemic, such as Madagascar. Purpose: We report a case series of simultaneous occurrence of leprosy and tuberculosis. Patients and Methods: In this retrospective study, we reviewed the medical records of patients with leprosy registered at the Department of Dermatology, University Hospital Befelatanana, Antananarivo, Madagascar, between January 2012 and June 2021. Patients with leprosy and diagnosed as coinfected by tuberculosis were included in the study. Results: Of the 120 leprosy cases observed during the study period, coinfection with leprosy and tuberculosis was found in five patients. The mean age was 43.4 (SD 13.2) ranging, 21-59 years. Male gender was predominant (4/5). Four patients presented with lepromatous leprosy, and one with borderline lepromatous leprosy. Three patients experienced leprosy reaction. Four cases of pulmonary tuberculosis and one case of multifocal tuberculosis were observed. The diagnosis of leprosy preceded tuberculosis in four cases, and a coinfection diagnosis was made simultaneously in one case. The average time to develop tuberculosis was 38.8 (SD 10.2) months. HIV infection, malnutrition, alcohol consumption, and long-term corticosteroid therapy were the immunosuppressive factors reported in our patients. Three patients received concomitant multidrug therapy for leprosy and tuberculosis. Conclusion: Dermatologists should be aware of the importance of screening patients affected by leprosy for latent or active tuberculosis to prevent morbidity and mortality due to coinfection and to reduce the risk of acquired resistance to rifampicin, which is the greatest risk of this association.

Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis as an Unusual Cause of Erythema Nodosum in a Malagasy Woman.

Introduction: Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis (IGM) is a rare chronic inflammatory disease. Neoplastic and infectious etiologies must be ruled out. IGM is a diagnostic challenge for countries with high tuberculosis endemicity like Madagascar since it may clinically and radiologically mimic breast tuberculosis. We report a case of IGM associated with erythema nodosum in a Malagasy. Case Report: A 29-year-old primiparous woman came to a dermatological consultation for typical erythema nodosum lesions that appeared one month after a breast swelling. She had no particular medical history. Examination revealed typical erythema nodosum lesions on the legs, voluminous tender mass in the right breast. Bacteriological samples and tuberculosis test were negative. Imaging showed mastitis on the right breast with no evidence of malignancy. Histology revealed a non-caseating granulomas on the lobule of the right breast. As part of an etiological work-up, COVID-19 serology was performed with a positive IgG antibody. The diagnosis of IGM associated with erythema nodosum was evocated. The evolution was favorable under systemic corticosteroid therapy. Discussion: The cause of this uncommon lesion remains obscure. The extramammary localizations such as erythema nodosum and arthralgia suggest an autoimmune origin. This pathogenesis is also reinforced by a good response to systemic immunosuppression. In our patient, the etiological assessment of the mastitis revealed a chronic infection with SARS-CoV-2. Histopathology is the gold standard for the IGM diagnosis which demonstrates a lobulocentric granulomas without caseous necrosis. Oral corticosteroid therapy is the initial choice of treatment. Conclusion: Now, with several cases of concomitant IGM and EN reported, dermatologists should be aware that erythema nodosum can be one of the presenting signs of IGM, since the two conditions appear to be associated. The particularity of our case lies in the incidental discovery of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Is a chronic granulomatous disease associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection, a coincidence?

Atopic dermatitis in adults: A cross-sectional study in the department of dermatology, Antananarivo, Madagascar.

BACKGROUND: Although atopic dermatitis (AD) is becoming a pressing public health concern in the world, Madagascar is underrepresented in the AD literature. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to study the demographic and clinical pattern of AD in adult dermatology outpatients. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Dermatology, University Hospital, Antananarivo, Madagascar. Patients >15 years old with a registered diagnosis of AD, from January 2010 to February 2019, were included. AD was diagnosed by a dermatologist according to Hanifin and Rajka criteria. The severity of AD was assessed using scoring atopic dermatitis (SCORAD). RESULTS: Forty-two cases of AD were included. The prevalence was 0.5%. The median patient age was 37 years. The age of onset of AD was before the age of 15 years in 38% of the patients and after the age of 15 years in 61.9% of the patients. There was a female preponderance (female to male ratio, 2:1), but no correlation was found between sex and the severity of AD. People living in urban areas were the most affected. According to SCORAD, 37 cases presented moderate AD and 2 cases presented severe AD. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of AD in adult dermatology outpatients is still low, and moderate AD is the most frequent form, according to SCORAD.

Osteoarticular sporotrichosis in an immunocompetent patient.

Sporotrichosis is a frequent subcutaneous mycosis in Madagascar. Extracutaenous forms are exceptional and are usually seen in immunosuppressed hosts. We report a case of an aggressive clinical evolution of lymphocutaneous sporotrichosis with osteoarticular involvement in an immunocompetent patient. Therapy with oral itraconazole 200 mg twice daily for 12 months improved the lesion. Early diagnosis of Sporothrix schenkii infection is critical to prevent complications including osteoarticular involvement, disseminated forms and death.

Quality of life in lupus erythematosus female patients with cutaneous lesions in Antananarivo, Madagascar.

Background: Lupus erythematosus (LE) is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects more women than men. The quality of life (QoL) of patients with lupus erythematosus and skin manifestations is impaired, but little is known about Malagasy patients. Objective: This study aimed to assess the impact of cutaneous lesions on the QoL of patients who present with LE. Methods: A transversal study, during 3 months, was conducted in patients who presented with LE and cutaneous lesions at the University Hospital Antananarivo. QoL was assessed using the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) scales. Results: The impact of cutaneous lesions on the QoL was assessed in 37 patients with LE, of whom 34 were women. The mean age of patients was 37.32 years. The mean DLQI was 5.43 ± 4.67 (range, 0-21). Of the patients, 2.7% had a very important effect (DLQI >21), 18.9% reported a great effect of skin symptoms of LE in their QoL (DLQI: 11-20), 18.9% had a moderate effect (DLQI: 6-10), 40.4% had a small effect (DLQI: 2-5), and 18.9% had no effect of cutaneous lesions on their QoL. Daily activities, symptoms, and feelings were the most altered dimensions. The alteration in patients' QOL was influenced by high monthly income, severe medical history, and localization of the cutaneous lesions on the face and neckline. No correlation was found between sex and QoL. Conclusion: This study shows that significant impairment of QoL was found in patients with LE and cutaneous manifestations, which affected their sense of well-being.

Quality of Life in Patients with Psoriasis Seen in the Department of Dermatology, Antananarivo, Madagascar.

BACKGROUND: Psoriasis is a chronic, inflammatory, and multifactorial dermatosis that impairs quality of life (QoL). Health-related QoL has become an important element in medical decision-making along with the effectiveness and the harmlessness of the treatments. OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of psoriasis in the QoL of patients with psoriasis by using the DLQI scales. METHODS: A cross-sectional study from January to June 2018 was conducted in the Department of Dermatology of the University Hospital Joseph Raseta Befelatanana, Antananarivo, Madagascar, including patients more than 18 years old with mild to severe psoriasis. The severity of psoriasis was assessed using the "Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI)". QoL of patients with psoriasis was evaluated by using the DLQI scales. RESULTS: 80 patients were included, their mean age was 36.5 years, and the male to female was 1.5 : 1. The mean DLQI score was 13.8. Symptoms, feelings, and psychic were the most altered dimensions. QoL was impaired in young patients, single, having medium level education. Even though patients with disease duration more than 5 years had higher DLQI score than other patients, the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.36). Furthermore, the clinical presentation of psoriasis did not influence the patient's QoL (p = 0.73). Patients with nail involvement had QoL impaired but the difference with another localization was not statistically significant (p = 0.2). The quality of life was influenced by body area involved. The higher the body surface area involved, the more QoL is impaired (p = 0.002). Furthermore, the higher the PASI, the more QoL is altered (p = 0.002). CONCLUSION: Psoriasis has a negative impact in the quality of life in Malagasy patients with psoriasis, especially in younger and single patients. Worse quality of life is correlated to severity of psoriasis.

Clinical aspects of previously treated chromoblastomycosis: A case series from Madagascar.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical aspects of chromoblastomycosis (CBM) presented by patients who had received incomplete antifungal treatment before consultation. METHODS: A prospective study of patients with clinically suspected CBM was performed between 2013 and 2018 in the Department of Dermatology at the University Hospital Antananarivo, and during consultation campaigns. RESULTS: Patients develop CBM over a period of more than 10 years, and many will have already received antifungals prescribed by general practitioners before consulting with a dermatologist. Such treatment obviously modifies the clinical presentation. From the 63 CBM patients in this large study, we describe 12 patients who received oral antifungals (terbinafine, griseofulvine, itraconazole, fluconazole) before consultation. The most frequent clinical aspect presented by these patients was cicatricial lesions, which are characteristically smooth and non-elevated, and enlarge by peripheral extension, with atrophic scarring at the center. CONCLUSION: Our study is the first to show that cicatricial lesions are a clinical aspect presented by CBM patients who received antifungals before presentation.

Birth Month and Prevalence of Atopic Dermatitis in Children Under 3 Years in Antananarivo, Madagascar.

BACKGROUND: Several studies have been done to evaluate the relationship between month of birth and atopic diseases but the results are contradictory. OBJECTIVE: We aim to evaluate the correlation between the month of birth and the prevalence of AD in Malagasy children less than 3 years. METHODS: A case-control study was conducted based on patients' data of the department of Dermatology in the University Hospital Joseph Raseta Befelatanana (UH/JRB) Antananarivo. It included 438 children less than 3 years seen in this department between January 2010 and December 2019. For each atopic dermatitis (AD) patient, two age-and sex-matched controls without a history of AD were selected from the same period. RESULTS: This study included 146 AD cases and 292 non-AD controls. Our case-control study found that there is a statistically significant correlation between birth month and risk of AD in Malagasy children <3 years. Compared with people born in December, people born in April had the highest risk of AD (OR: 2.11, 95% CI 0.93-4.78), followed by people born in March (OR: 1.52, 95% CI 0.79-2,88). Asthma, allergic rhinitis and allergic conjunctivitis were significantly correlated with AD in our patients. CONCLUSION: Our case-control study found that being born in April and March (dry season) may be associated with an increased risk of AD.

Pemphigus vulgaris as the first manifestation of multiple myeloma: a case report.

BACKGROUND: The association between pemphigus and malignancy has been well documented for decades but an association between pemphigus vulgaris and multiple myeloma is unusual. We report a case of pemphigus vulgaris revealing multiple myeloma. CASE PRESENTATION: A 55-year-old Malagasy man, with no significant past medical history, presented with bullous and erosive skin lesions involving his trunk and scalp for the last 2 months. He had no mucous membrane involvement. A diagnosis of pemphigus vulgaris was made on skin biopsy and direct immunofluorescence of perilesional skin revealing immunoglobulin G deposition in the intercellular spaces in the epidermis. In an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, his serum autoantibody index against desmoglein-1 and 3 was found to be 112 RU/mL and 34 RU/mL respectively. Serum immunoelectrophoresis showed a monoclonal gammopathy with a markedly elevated immunoglobulin G level (2880 mg/dL) in association with a lambda free light chain. Bone marrow aspirate showed 6% plasma cell infiltration. Further investigations, including creatinine blood test and whole body radiographic examinations, showed that he had initially clinical stage I multiple myeloma of the immunoglobulin G-λ type. Six months later, bone tomography revealed vertebral compression fractures of the thoracic and lumbar spine that correlated with his back pain topographically. Anti-myeloma treatment including melphalan and prednisone led to an immediate decline in monoclonal immunoglobulin G concentration. Skin and hematologic remission were maintained for 12 months. CONCLUSIONS: Absence of mucosal involvement, lack of vacuolar degeneration at the interface, and absence of apoptotic, dyskeratotic keratinocytes ruled out paraneoplastic pemphigus in our case. Pemphigus vulgaris should be considered even if possible underlying disease for which paraneoplastic pemphigus is recognized is present.

Rosai-Dorfman Disease Involving Multiple Organs: An Unusual Case with Poor Prognosis.

Rosai-Dorfman disease is a rare, benign histiocytic proliferative disorder that usually affects the lymph nodes. Although extranodal involvement has been reported in diverse sites, manifestation in the cardiovascular system is extremely rare. Specifically, cardiac involvement in Rosai-Dorfman disease is an extraordinarily infrequent event. We describe a case of a 36-year-old female who presented Rosai-Dorfman disease of multiple organs including the heart, with poor prognosis.