The Walter Reed Files… I was asked one weekend to come in to see a patient at Walter Reed. He was a 29 year-old caucasian male who developed a purulent eruption along his left flank. His was on assignment in West Africa in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. He spent the first afternoon lunging at the… Read more »
Hyde first described digital mucous cyst (DMC) in 1882. In 1893, Ledderhose suggested that ganglia arose spontaneously in the subcutaneous tissue. Ritschel, in 1895, proposed the earliest formulation of the theory that mucoid degeneration may be responsible for digital mucous cysts; Carp and Stout popularized the theory in 1928. They are also referred to as Myxoid Cyst, Synovial Cyst,… Read more »
Dermatofibroma (DF) also referred to as Benign Fibrous Histiocytoma, is a very common skin lesion, described as usually a single round or ovoid papule or nodule, about 0.5 to 1.0 cm in diameter, often reddish brown but sometimes has a yellowish hue. On palpation these lesions are firm and present an abrupt elevation at the… Read more »
In 1968 Bart, et al described 10 cases of an acquired growth that was located on the fingers. Alothough clinically these lesions resembled a cutaneous horn or a rudimentary digit, they had distinct histologic features. He suggested the name Acquired Digital Fibrokeratoma (ADFK). Subsequently Pinkus described 28 more cases but some of these patients had… Read more »
The first use of the term “Alopecia Areata” is attributed to the Polish physician John Jonston (1603-1675) in his book “Medicina Practica” published in 1664. For more historical information on Alopecia Areata (AA) click HERE. Alopecia areata is also referred to as Autoimmune Alopecia. AA is characterized by rapid and complete hair loss in one… Read more »
Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia (HHT) was first described by Wiliam Osler, Frederick Parkes Weber and Henri Jules Louis Marie Rendu in the 19th and early 20th century. It is a rare autosomal dominantly inherited disorder with an estimated prevalence of 1 in 5000 to 1 in 10,000 births worldwide. It affects blood vessels throughout the body… Read more »
Pyogenic granuloma (PG) is a relatively common small, eruptive, usually solitary sessile or pedunculated, often friable papule. Another description is they present as a shiny raspberry-like or “minced meat” surface (see pictures below) papule. It is also referred to as a lobular capillary hemangioma and granuloma telangiectaticum. PGs bleed easily on the slightest of trauma… Read more »
Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS) also referred to as Acne Inversa, was first described in 1839 by the French physician Frederick Velpeau and subsequently was referred to as Velpeau’s disease. In 1854 Aristide Verneuil also described this disorder so in early literature it was also referred to as Verneuil’s disease. It is believed that Karl Marx had… Read more »