A clinical and epidemiological study of lupus erythematosus at a tertiary referral dermatology clinic in Korea.

Dermatological examination is critical for the evaluation of lupus erythematosus. However, little is known about the epidemiology and clinical characteristics of the lupus erythematosus patients that visit dermatology clinics with the chief complaint of skin lesions, especially among Asian populations. We performed this study to determine the epidemiology of cutaneous lupus erythematosus for three subtypes: acute cutaneous lupus erythematosus, subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus, and chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus, and for lupus erythematosus non-specific skin disease. Also, we sought to determine the relationship between each type of lupus erythematosus, by the skin manifestations and systemic lupus erythematosus. The medical records of lupus erythematosus patients that were diagnosed by their clinical manifestations, skin biopsy results, and laboratory findings from January 1998 through December 2007 were reviewed. A total of 117 patients were diagnosed with lupus erythematosus; 62 cases had chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus, 11 had subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus, and 41 had acute cutaneous lupus erythematosus. The remaining three had systemic lupus erythematosus features with lupus erythematosus non-specific skin lesions such as Raynaud phenomenon, livedo reticularis/vasculitis, non-scarring alopecia, and periungual telangiectasia. The acute cutaneous lupus erythematosus subgroup showed extreme female predominance (9.2:1) whereas subacute and chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus subgroups did not. Patients with chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus tended to be older than other groups (peak incidence in the fifth decade). Incidence of laboratory abnormalities, including positive connective tissue markers such as antinuclear, double-strand DNA, and Ro/SS-A antibodies, were present in the order acute, subacute, and chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus. Acute cutaneous lupus erythematosus almost always indicated systemic involvement of lupus erythematosus, whereas chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus did not predict the development or existence of systemic lupus erythematosus and had a benign clinical course. Careful consideration of lupus erythematosus non-specific skin lesions may help detect systemic lupus erythematosus regardless of the diagnosis of cutaneous lupus erythematosus.

Pemphigus foliaceus induced by an angiotensin II receptor blocker.

A 76-year-old Korean woman presented with pruritic erythematous vesicles and crusted plaques over her entire body. She had been taking an angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB) (candesartan) for 2 months before developing the skin lesions. The patients was diagnosed with pemphigus foliaceus based on the clinical and immunopathological criteria, including intra-epidermal bulla on skin histopathology, intercellular deposit of C(3) and IgG on direct immunofluorescence, and autoantibodies to the 160-kDa antigen on both immunoblot and ELISA. The medication was changed to another antihypertensive agent and the patient was treated with prednisolone for 2 months. The vesiculobullous skin lesions gradually disappeared. However, the skin lesions reappeared 2 months after starting a different ARB (telmisartan). This case illustrates the importance of taking a complete drug history in patients who present with bullous diseases. Furthermore, ARBs should be added to the list of nonthiol drugs that can possibly induce pemphigus.