Disseminated Mucocutaneous Histoplasmosis Diagnosed in the United Kingdom, Presumably as a Result of Recrudescence Decades After Primary Infection Following Immunosuppressive Treatment of Its Mimic, Sarcoidosis: A Multidisciplinary Cautionary Tale.

ABSTRACT: Histoplasmosis is a dimorphic fungal infection, which is rare outside endemic pockets in North, Central, and South America, Asia, and Africa. Herein, we describe a woman in her 80s living in the Scottish Borders region of the United Kingdom with a recent diagnosis of granulomatous rosacea, who on receiving escalating immunosuppression for suspected sarcoidosis, and long-standing rheumatoid arthritis developed a striking eruption involving her eyelids along with painful ulceration of the oral and nasal mucosa. Histopathologic examination of the skin and mucosal lesions demonstrated granulomatous inflammation with numerous yeast forms of fungal organisms with morphological characteristics of Histoplasma species. This was confirmed to be H. capsulatum on fungal culture and direct panfungal polymerase chain reaction assay. Although the patient had not left the United Kingdom for more than 20 years, she gave a travel history involving multiple trips to countries where histoplasmosis is known to occur, before that. This case exemplifies the challenges involved in making a diagnosis of histoplasmosis in nonendemic regions for both clinicians and pathologists alike. In this particular patient, the diagnostic difficulties were compounded by the clinicopathological overlap with other cutaneous and systemic granulomatous disorders like granulomatous rosacea and suspected sarcoidosis and also the exceptionally long latency period between the purported historical primary infection and recent recrudescence. We highlight this unusual case to increase an awareness of histoplasmosis, which is very rare in nonendemic regions like the United Kingdom and involves cases acquired during residence in or travel to endemic areas, to ensure its prompt recognition and treatment.

Granulomatous pigmented purpuric dermatosis: report of a case with atypical clinical presentation including dermoscopic findings.

Granulomatous pigmented purpuric dermatosis (PPD) is a rare and poorly recognized histological variant of PPD, which commonly affects the distal extremities of mainly Far East Asian patients. Many of the reported cases are associated with hyperlipidemia or other associated systemic derangements. The authors hereby describe an additional case of granulomatous PPD affecting a 56-year-old Caucasian woman presenting unusually as a solitary lesion confined to the lower back. The report also describes dermoscopic findings, summarizes clinicopathological features of all the cases published till date, and discusses the histopathological differential diagnosis.

Perineural inflammation in morphea (localized scleroderma): systematic characterization of a poorly recognized but potentially useful histopathological feature.

The association between morphea and perineural inflammation has been reported sporadically but never studied systematically. To assess the prevalence and nature of perineural inflammation in various clinicopathologic stages of morphea and a cohort of other inflammatory dermatoses, 80 morphea and 36 control skin biopsies were studied using hematoxylin/eosin and S100 stains. Perineural inflammation was semiquantitatively analyzed (scored), which along with the pattern (concentric vs. marginal) and cellular composition was compared in the two groups. Perineural inflammation was identified in 84% and 61% of morphea and control cases, respectively. Examination of only routinely stained sections could still detect this feature in 58% of morphea and 33% of control biopsies. Mean perineural inflammation score in morphea (0.65) was significantly higher than in the control group (0.23) (p < 0.0001) and the inflammation tended to show a concentric pattern with plasma cell neurotropism. Intraneural inflammation was limited to four morphea cases. Although perineural inflammation is common in morphea, it is not unusual to find this feature in other inflammatory conditions. Nevertheless, perineural inflammation can serve as an important diagnostic adjunct in difficult cases of morphea if one considers its greater intensity, predominantly concentric pattern and the tendency to show plasma cell neurotropism.