Neutrophilic myositis is a very rare disease histologically characterized by neutrophil infiltration of muscle tissues. We report a case of a 47-year-old man who presented with acute onset of severe swelling and pain on his left shoulder with high fever. He was initially suspected of having cellulitis, but intravenous antibiotics did not improve his symptoms. Similar swelling and pain then developed on both calves. Investigations with magnetic resonance imaging of the lower legs and muscle biopsy led to a diagnosis of neutrophilic myositis. High dose glucocorticoid dramatically improved his symptoms within days. Clinicians need to be aware of this rare disease as a cause of acute febrile myositis mimicking infection.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Biopsy ; Cellulitis ; Diagnosis ; Fever ; Humans ; Leg ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Middle Aged ; Myositis* ; Neutrophil Infiltration ; Neutrophils* ; Rare Diseases ; Shoulder ; Sweet Syndrome

Neutrophilic infiltrates of skin in the setting of lupus patients with bullous systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and leukocytoclastic vasculitis are well documented. However, most dermatology studies do not consider cutaneous involvement by SLE in the histologic differential diagnosis of neutrophilic inflammatory dermatosis in non-bullous or non-vasculitic lesions. Nevertheless, an increasing number of studies have reported cell-rich or Sweet's-like neutrophilic reactions as well as patients with skin lesions characterized by paucicellular neutrophilic dermal infiltrates. A 56-year-old female patient with history of lupus nephritis presented with multiple erythematous to brownish papulo-patches and plaques on both legs for 1 month. She had no signs or systemic symptoms of Sweet's syndrome. Histopathologic finding showed perivascular and interstitial neutrophilic infiltration with leukocytoclasia in the upper dermis, but not as dense as commonly observed in Sweet's syndrome with absence of papillary dermal edema. Herein, we present a rare case of non-bullous neutrophilic dermatosis associated with SLE. It is important to consider SLE-associated neutrophilic dermatosis in the differential diagnosis of neutrophilic tissue reactions and to be aware of the broad histologic spectrum that may be encountered in SLE-associated neutrophilic dermatosis, ranging from subtle paucicellular lesions to florid Sweet's-like lesions.
Dermatology ; Dermis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Edema ; Female ; Humans ; Leg ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; Lupus Nephritis* ; Middle Aged ; Neutrophils* ; Skin ; Skin Diseases* ; Sweet Syndrome ; Vasculitis

Facial Dermatoses ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Humans ; Male ; Pyoderma Gangrenosum ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Sweet Syndrome ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Young Adult

Sweet's syndrome is an uncommon reactive dermatoses characterized by fever, polymorphonuclear leukocytosis, painful erythematous plaques, and dense dermal infiltrate of neutrophils. Sweet's syndrome can be associated with several diseases, including infectious diseases, malignant tumors, and autoimmune diseases. However, no case of Sweet's syndrome associated with Sjogren's syndrome (SjS) has been reported in Korea. A 44-year-old woman presented with acute pustular rashes and fever. The patient had multiple papulopustular skin rashes, and complained of fever, chills, and headache. Our patient had the characteristic clinical and histopathological features of Sweet's syndrome, in association with SjS, diagnosed by salivary gland scan, positive anti-SS-A/SS-B antibody, and sicca symptoms simultaneously. Thus, we report on a case of a patient with Sweet's syndrome with concomitant diagnosis of SjS.
Adult ; Autoimmune Diseases ; Chills ; Communicable Diseases ; Diagnosis ; Exanthema ; Female ; Fever ; Headache ; Humans ; Korea ; Leukocytosis ; Neutrophils ; Salivary Glands ; Sjogren's Syndrome* ; Skin Diseases ; Sweet Syndrome*

Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; complications ; diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Pleurisy ; complications ; diagnosis ; Sweet Syndrome ; diagnosis ; etiology

Diagnosis, Differential ; Erythema Multiforme ; diagnosis ; Erythema Nodosum ; diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Leg Dermatoses ; diagnosis ; Middle Aged ; Mycosis Fungoides ; diagnosis ; Skin Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; Sweet Syndrome ; diagnosis

Sweet's syndrome (SS), also known as acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis, is characterized by the sudden onset of painful erythematous skin lesions together with fever and neutrophilia. SS can be associated with several disorders, such as malignancy, autoimmune disease, and infections. However, SS associated with liver cirrhosis is uncommon. We report a case of SS in a patient who was diagnosed with liver cirrhosis caused by chronic hepatitis B.
Hepatitis B, Chronic/complications/*diagnosis ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis/*diagnosis/etiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neutrophils/immunology/pathology ; Skin Diseases/*diagnosis/pathology ; Sweet Syndrome/*diagnosis/pathology ; Tomography Scanners, X-Ray Computed

Mycobacteruim kansasii occasionally causes disseminated infection with poor outcome in immunocompromised patients. We report the first case of disseminated M. kansasii infection associated with multiple skin lesions in a 48-yr-old male with myelodysplastic syndrome. The patient continuously had taken glucocorticoid during 21 months and had multiple skin lesions developed before 9 months without complete resolution until admission. Skin and mediastinoscopic paratracheal lymph node (LN) biopsies showed necrotizing granuloma with many acid-fast bacilli. M. kansasii was cultured from skin, sputum, and paratracheal LNs. The patient had been treated successfully with isoniazid, rifampin, ethmabutol, and clarithromycin, but died due to small bowel obstruction. Our case emphasizes that chronic skin lesions can lead to severe, disseminated M. kansasii infection in an immunocompromised patient. All available cases of disseminated M. kansasii infection in non HIV-infected patients reported since 1953 are comprehensively reviewed.
Antitubercular Agents/therapeutic use ; Clarithromycin/therapeutic use ; Glucocorticoids/therapeutic use ; Humans ; Immunocompromised Host ; Isoniazid/therapeutic use ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mycobacterium Infections, Nontuberculous/*diagnosis/drug therapy/immunology ; *Mycobacterium kansasii/isolation & purification ; Myelodysplastic Syndromes/drug therapy ; Rifampin/therapeutic use ; Skin Diseases, Bacterial/*diagnosis/immunology/pathology ; Sputum/microbiology ; Sweet Syndrome/diagnosis

All-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) is the standard induction treatment for acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). Quite many ATRA-related side effects, including retinoic acid syndrome, were reported. So far, it has rarely been reported that Sweet's syndrome, characterized by fever, neutrophilia, painful erythematous cutaneous plaques, dense dermal infiltrates of mature neutrophils and rapid response to steroid therapy, is associated with ATRA. In the case that Sweet's syndrome associated with ATRA is found, physicians will have to face a great challenge over the possibility of infectious conditions. We present here a case of Sweet's syndrome associated with ATRA. A 35-year-old female with APL developed fever, painful erythematous cutaneous plaques on both cheeks, right wrist and both shins during induction chemotherapy with ATRA. A skin biopsy revealed a dense dermal infiltrate, consisting of mature neutrophils without vasculitis or cutaneous immunoglobulin deposits, which is compatible with Sweet's syndrome. Oral prednisone was administered and the lesions started to improve within 48 hours
Adult ; Biopsy, Needle ; Case Report ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Human ; Leukemia, Promyelocytic, Acute/diagnosis/*drug therapy ; Prednisone/administration & dosage ; Risk Assessment ; Sweet's Syndrome/*chemically induced/drug therapy/*pathology ; Tretinoin/*adverse effects/therapeutic use

We report a case of idiopathic subcutaneous type Sweets syndrome in an otherwise healthy 52-year-old woman. She had suffered from recurrent erythematous tender plaques on the trunk and extremities for 4 years. Histopathological examination revealed heavy infiltration of neutrophils and many cytophagic cells in the subcutaneous fat tissue. We suggest that Sweets syndrome, subcutaneous type, should be included in the differential diagnosis of panniculitis.
Diagnosis, Differential ; Extremities ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Neutrophils ; Panniculitis ; Subcutaneous Fat ; Sweet Syndrome*