Davis, Mike

Abstract Background Reactive granulomatous dermatitis (RGD) is an umbrella term used to describe interstitial granulomatous dermatitis (IGD), palisaded neutrophilic and granulomatous dermatitis (PNGD), and interstitial granulomatous drug eruption (IGDR). Objective The aim of this study was to describe systemic associations of RGD, explore possible associations between histopathologic findings and systemic RGD associations and determine clinical relevance of RGD subtypes. Methods We retrospectively studied clinical and histopathologic characteristics of patients with RGD from 1990 through 2020. Results Of 65 patients with RGD (41 women, 24 men; median age at diagnosis, 62 years), 37 had IGD, 26 had PNGD, and 2 had IGDR. Fifty patients (76.9%) had an associated systemic condition; rheumatologic conditions were identified for 34 (52.3%) patients. The associated systemic condition occurred before RGD in approximately 75% of patients. Statistical analyses did not show significant associations between specific subtypes of RGD and systemic diseases or treatment response, and specific histopathologic findings were not predictive of an associated systemic disease. Conclusions Although most patients with RGD had an associated systemic condition, subtypes of RGD did not correlate with systemic associations, lending support to the use of the umbrella term RGD .

Hematological abnormalities, such as anemia, leucopenia, and thrombocytopenia, secondary to peripheral destruction, are common in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, cytopenias from autoimmune myelofibrosis (AIMF) are extremely uncommon in SLE, with less than 40 reported cases in the literature. We report the case of a 33-year-old female who presented with bullous skin lesions and pancytopenia as the presenting manifestation of what was ultimately diagnosed as SLE with AIMF. She responded well to glucocorticoids and mycophenolate mofetil.

ABSTRACT A total of 563 specimens (234 dermal and 329 genital swabs) from patients suspected of having herpes simplex virus (HSV) infections were processed using two different extraction methods (the MagNA Pure LC system and the swab extraction tube system [SETS]); HSV DNA was amplified by LightCycler PCR. HSV DNA was detected in 157 of 563 specimens (27.9%) processed by the MagNA Pure LC system and in 179 of 563 specimens (31.8%) processed by SETS ( P < 0.0001). There was no specimen processed by the MagNA Pure LC extraction method that was positive only for HSV DNA. Of 157 specimens positive by both methods, HSV DNA copy levels were higher (using cycle crossover points [cycle threshold { C T }]) with SETS (mean C T , 25.9 cycles) than with the MagNA Pure LC system (mean C T , 32.0 cycles) ( P < 0.0001). The time to process 32 samples was longer with the MagNA Pure LC extraction system (90 min) than with SETS (35 min). HSV DNA extraction using SETS is faster, less expensive, and more sensitive than the MagNA Pure LC system and could replace the latter for the laboratory diagnosis of HSV infections using LightCycler PCR.