Cutaneous Manifestations of Periarteritis Nodosa

The wide clinical spectrum of polyarteritis nodosa with cutaneous involvement*

“…It is surprising that of 102 cases of polyarteritis nodosa that Borrie (1972) reported, apart from the cases of'cutaneous' polyarteritis nodosa, there was only one other case in whom the skin was shown to be histologically involved by the disease. Most reports suggest an incidence of skin involvement in polyarteritis nodosa of 25-50",, (Ketron & Bernstein, 1939;Fronhert & Sheps, 1967;Leib, Restivo & Paulus, 1979;Sack, Cassidy & Bole, 1975). The frequeney with which such skin involvement manifests as subcutaneous nodulation also varies, such that Travers (1979) considered that nodulation was much rarer than would be expected, whereas Sack et al (1975) report that this is the most frequent dermatological feature.…”

Failure to Demonstrate Precipitating Antibodies Against Vessel Extracts in Patients with Vascular Disorders

“…Although this division is arbitrary, the problem of the histological diagnosis cannot be discusses here in detail [10,14,15,18,21,24]. The sera of two patients with polyarteritis nodosa gave negative ringand precipitation reactions, while in a third patient the ring reaction was also negative.…”

Cutaneous Polyarteritis Nodosa: An Update

“…S kin lesions are observed in 25%-60% of patients with polyarteritis nodosa (PN), 1,2) and include subcutaneous nodules, livedo reticularis, ulcers, and gangrene. PN is systemic vasculitis, and discussion has been made on the association between skin and systemic lesions, i.e., whether a pathological condition in which vasculitis is limited to the skin is present or not, and, if present, how it is diagnosed and what its prognosis is.…”