Cutaneous sarcoidosis: an intriguing model of immune dysregulation

Cutaneous Sarcoidosis in Bilateral Carpal Tunnel Release Scars: A Case Report

CASE

A 58-year-old woman with a history of systemic sarcoidosis, 2 years in remission, presented 6 years after bilateral carpal tunnel release with a 3-month history of nodularity, erythema, and tenderness to her bilateral incisions. Histopathology demonstrated noncaseating granulomas without evidence of foreign material or organisms, consistent with infiltrative scar sarcoidosis. Treatment included 4 intralesional corticosteroid injections over 5 months, with progressive resolution of symptoms and no evidence of systemic sarcoidosis reoccurrence.

CONCLUSION

Sarcoidosis should be considered when presented with a cutaneous lesion in association with an incisional scar, either as primary presentation or as disease recurrence.

Eyebrow tattoo-associated sarcoidosis: A case report

Cutaneous sarcoidosis can manifest after doing a permanent makeup (PMU), such as tattooed eyebrows. A 41-year-old Chinese woman, with a tattoo in the eyebrows, developed yellow–brown plaques in her eyebrows for several months. A dermatopathological examination revealed non-caseating granulomas consistent with cutaneous sarcoidosis. For months, topical corticosteroids were applied, which showed little effect. Furthermore, a physical evaluation of the patient revealed no apparent involvement of other body organs except bilateral hilar lymphadenopathy with few diffuse reticulonodular opacities. On the basis of fully informed consent, the patient agreed to a 6-month initial follow-up to avoid unnecessary PMU.

Sarcoidosis Presenting as Late Seroma Mimicking Breast Implant-Associated Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma

ABSTRACT

Late seroma related to breast silicone implants is a rare complication. Interest for its characterization has grown after its association with the recently described breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma. The differential diagnosis includes infectious diseases, mechanical and traumatic causes, tumors, postpartum seroma, and inflammatory, allergic, or idiopathic causes.Sarcoidosis has been associated with breast silicone implants over the last decades, but it has never been reported as a cause of breast effusion. We describe a rare presentation of sarcoidosis as a late breast implant seroma simulating the clinical features and radiologic findings of breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma and highlight that sarcoidosis can be suspected by the presence of nonnecrotizing epithelioid granulomas in the cytology, with a characteristic inverted ratio of CD4/CD8 T cells.The aims of this article are to review the current evidence about sarcoidosis related to silicone implants and breast cancer, provide a new alternative in the differential diagnosis of late seroma, and advise the scientific community how early implant removal can improve the disease.

It's elemental! Siliceous diatom frustules producing sarcoid-like granulomas in the subcutis

Silica granulomas have been described on the skin and are rare; however, this is the first report of a sarcoid-like granulomatous reaction because of siliceous diatom frustules in the subcutis, making this an unprecedented case. A 41-year-old female presented with a subcutaneous nodule on the right forearm clinically suggestive of cyst, foreign body, or lipoma. Excisional biopsy revealed subcutis with a sarcoid-like granulomatous reaction in a background of fibrosis, containing abundant semitransparent, exquisitely geometric particles, mildly refringent under polarized light, highlighted by phase contrast microscopy; special stains were negative for microorganisms. Definitive characterization of the peculiar fragments was accomplished by confocal laser microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, revealing them as diatom frustules made of silicon dioxide (SiO₂ ) or silica. Diatoms are unicellular algae, their skeletons (frustules) made of silica have collected on the bottom of rivers, lakes, and oceans for thousands or millions of years and form what we know as diatomite or diatomaceous earth, which is widely used in different industries and easily available in the market. The mechanism whereby diatom frustules gained access to the patient's subcutis is enigmatic.

A Patient with Necrotizing Vasculitis Related to Sarcoidosis, which Was Diagnosed via Immunohistochemical Methods Using Propionibacterium acnes-specific Monoclonal Antibodies

Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes) is a commensal bacterium indigenous to the skin. Previous reports have suggested that infection with P. acnes causes sarcoidosis, a systemic granulomatous disease. We present the case of a 63-year-old woman who developed subcutaneous nodules. A skin biopsy revealed necrotizing vasculitis and noncaseating granulomas, which are characteristic of sarcoidosis. Immunohistostaining revealed a P. acnes skin infection, which led to the diagnosis of sarcoidosis. Minocycline treatment resolved the infection and improved the patient's symptoms. We herein report a case in which immunohistochemistry was useful in the diagnosis of sarcoidosis.

Immunocompromised cutaneous district, isotopic, and isopathic phenomena-Systematic review

BACKGROUND

Although the development of lesions in skin areas that have undergone injury has long been known, understanding of its pathogenesis is limited. Depending on their peculiarities, those events have been described as isomorphic, reverse isomorphic, pseudoisomorphic, isotopic, and isopathic phenomena. Ruocco's immunocompromised cutaneous district (ICD) concept was proposed to include all those phenomena.

AIMS

We performed a systematic review and critically evaluated the current understanding about ICD and its relationship with the isotopic and isopathic phenomena.

METHODS

To illustrate the complexity of the theme, we present a case of subclinical leprosy, whose manifestation was brisk in an old tattoo. The possible interaction between the approached phenomena, acting in the genesis of the disease, made this a pertinent study. The research was conducted under the PRISMA-P guidelines, in seven biomedical databases between 1996 and 2018. The eligibility criteria were systematic reviews, meta-analyses, clinical studies, and case series, written in English, French, Italian, Portuguese, or Spanish.

RESULTS

Using standardized keywords, 1220 articles were identified. After applying the eligibility criteria, 53 studies were selected.

CONCLUSION

This review ratifies that all these phenomena are aspects of one single condition. They can be integrated into the ICD concept with the pathogenesis including: (a) neural damage (peripheral or central) and (b) chronic lymphedema. Both may change the local neuroimmune interaction. The identification of these phenomena and the understanding of their pathogenesis are of paramount importance, to define the diagnosis and choose the therapeutic strategy.

Selected Giant Cell Rich Lesions of the Temporal Bone

Giant cell rich lesions of the temporal bone encompass a wide spectrum of disease that includes infectious, reactive, and neoplastic processes. When dealing with any lesion that can potentially involve bone, it is important to understand both the clinical presentation and to correlate the histologic findings with the radiologic imaging. This review discusses the clinical, the pathologic features including the differential diagnosis, and the treatment of some of the more commonly encountered giant cell rich entities in this region.

Atypical Cutaneous Presentations of Sarcoidosis: Two Case Reports and Review of the Literature

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

The goal of this review is to provide the reader with an updated summary of the cutaneous manifestations of systemic sarcoidosis, with a particular emphasis on the predilection of sarcoidosis for scars, tattoos, and other areas of traumatized skin.

RECENT FINDINGS

While the mechanism underlying the propensity for traumatized skin to develop sarcoidosis lesions remains unclear, several theories have been proposed including the idea that cutaneous sarcoidosis represents an exuberant, antigen-driven foreign-body response, as well as the theory that traumatized skin represents an immunocompromised district with altered local immune trafficking and neural signaling. In this review, we present two cases in which the development of cutaneous lesions in scars and tattoos was integral to the diagnosis of systemic sarcoidosis. We then review the various cutaneous manifestations of systemic sarcoidosis, the clinical characteristics and differential diagnosis of scar and tattoo sarcoidosis, the proposed mechanism by which traumatized skin is prone to developing sarcoidosis lesions, and current treatments for cutaneous sarcoidosis.

Spectrum of orocutaneous disease associations: Genodermatoses and inflammatory conditions

The oral cavity and cutaneous organ systems share a close embryologic origin. Therefore, there are numerous dermatologic conditions presenting with concomitant oral findings of which the dermatologist must be aware. The second article in this continuing medical education series reviews inflammatory orocutaneous conditions and a number of genodermatoses. It is essential for dermatologists to be familiar with oral cavity manifestations associated with dermatologic diseases for prompt diagnosis, management, and appropriate referral to stomatology and dentistry.

Cutaneous sarcoidosis: A retrospective case series and a hospital-based case-control study in Taiwan

Sarcoidosis is a systemic granulomatous disorder of unknown etiology often involving skin. Studies on cutaneous sarcoidosis and comorbidities are limited. This study is aimed to describe the clinical features of cutaneous sarcoidosis diagnosed in our hospital and to determine the relationships between cutaneous sarcoidosis and comorbidities.This retrospective study evaluates patients with cutaneous sarcoidosis in a tertiary center in Taiwan from 1996 to 2015. The records of 38 patients with cutaneous sarcoidosis were reviewed for clinical characteristics and evaluated by analysis of variance. A 1:4 case-control analysis was conducted with 152 age- and sex-matched controls who underwent biopsy for other benign skin tumors.The male to female ratio was 1:4.4. The average age at diagnosis was 51.7 years. Female patients were on average 13.9 years older than male patients. The correlation of age with gender was statistically significant (P = .037). The most common cutaneous lesions were plaques (47.4%) and confined to the face (71.1%). Of the 38 patients, 26.3% had diabetes mellitus. Age over 40 (P = .014) and female (P = .014) were associated with facial involvement. In the case-control study, a higher percentage of patients with cutaneous sarcoidosis than of control subjects had diabetes mellitus (P = .001), hearing loss (P = .031) and eye diseases (P = .047).The present study demonstrates a striking female predominance and high proportions of facial involvement. Diabetes mellitus, hearing loss, and eye diseases may be associated with Taiwanese patients with cutaneous sarcoidosis.

Granulomatous & histiocytic dermatitides

Granulomas of the skin may be classified in several ways. They are either infectious or non-infectious in character, and they contain areas of necrobiosis or necrosis, or not. Responsible infectious agents may be mycobacterial, fungal, treponemal, or parasitic organisms, and each case of granulomatous dermatitis should be assessed histochemically for those microbes. In the non-infectious group, examples of necrobiotic or necrotizing granulomas include granuloma annulare; necrobiosis lipoidica; rheumatoid nodule; and lupus miliaris disseminates faciei. Non-necrobiotic/necrotizing and non-infectious lesions are exemplified by sarcoidosis; foreign-body reactions; Melkersson-Rosenthal syndrome; Blau syndrome; elastolytic granuloma; lichenoid and granulomatous dermatitis; interstitial granulomatous dermatitis; cutaneous involvement by Crohn disease; granulomatous rosacea; and granulomatous pigmented purpura. Histiocytic dermatitides that do not feature granuloma formation are peculiar reactions to infection, such as cutaneous malakoplakia; leishmaniasis; histoplasmosis; lepromatous leprosy; rhinoscleroma; lymphogranuloma venereum; and granuloma inguinale.

The lady with the dragon tattoo

BACKGROUND

Though the skin is affected in sarcoidosis in about one-third of cases, granulomatous tattoo reactions are an unusual manifestation of the disease. It is important phenomenon to recognize, as it frequently leads to the diagnosis of systemic sarcoidosis.

CASE PRESENTATION

A 35-year-old Caucasian female with multiple tattoos presented with a 5-week history of tenderness of the black dye in a tattoo depicting a dragon. She also described a 15-month history of fatigue, polyarthralgia, and mild dyspnea. Skin biopsy demonstrated multiple dermal non-caseating granulomata with associated tattoo ink. Further investigation revealed the presence of systemic sarcoidosis. Her symptoms and skin changes improved with conservative management.

CONCLUSION

Sarcoidal tattoo reactions in those without systemic sarcoidosis are a rare occurrence, and their presence should prompt a search for systemic involvement. The accurate identification of skin involvement in sarcoidosis is important, as it tends to occur early in the course of disease, and the skin is a readily accessible site for biopsy, allowing for prompt diagnosis.