A case of actinic lichen planus

Summary The condition known as actinic lichen planus is believed to be a particular variant of lichen planus which occurs on light‐exposed areas. Synonyms include lichen planus tropicus, 1 lichen planus subtropicus, 2 lichen planus in subtropical countries, 3 lichenoid melanodermatitis, 4 and lichen planus atrophicus annularis, 5 The majority of reported cases are from the Middle East, 1–3,6 although there have also been cases in North Africans, 7 black South Africans 8 Kenyans, 4 and Indians. 9 There are other reports from Italy, 10 the United States 5,11 and the Netherlands. 12 'Summertime actinic lichenoid eruption'has been suggested as a better term for the condition. A case of actinic lichen planus is described in a boy who has been resident in the United Kingdom all his life, but who is of Egyptian extraction.