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An immunofluorescence study of primary anetoderma
Author(s) -
BERGMAN R.,
FRIEDMANBIRNBAUM R.,
HAZAZ B.,
COHEN E.,
MUNICHOR M.,
LICHTIG C.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
clinical and experimental dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.587
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1365-2230
pISSN - 0307-6938
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2230.1990.tb02048.x
Subject(s) - medicine , dermis , immunofluorescence , direct fluorescent antibody , pathology , serology , antibody , biopsy , immune system , skin biopsy , dermatology , lupus erythematosus , immunology
Summary Primary anetoderma (PA) has occasionally been described in association with lupus erythematosus (LE). The present study was performed to elucidate a possible causal link between PA and LE by the use of direct and indirect immunofluorescence (IF) methods. Two patients with PA were studied. Biopsy specimens were obtained from early inflammatory and atrophic anetoderma lesions and from the exposed and unexposed uninvolved skin of each patient. The pattern of immune deposits observed in one patient was indistinguishable from that which is often seen in systemic LE, and in the other patient from that which may be observed in chronic cutaneous LE. The direct IF study also showed fibrillar immune deposits in the dermis that resembled elastic fibres morphologically. The indirect IF study, however, failed to demonstrate anti‐elastic fibre antibodies in the patients'sera. The results of this study and a review of the literature suggest that some cases of PA have direct IF findings similar to those of either chronic cutaneous or systemic LE. However, these findings, along; with the serological findings, are insufficient to establish a diagnosis of LE in most of these PA cases.