Palmo-plantar hyperkeratosis associated with HTLV-1 infection: a case report

Abstract

Background Palmoplantar hyperkeratosis is a cutaneous manifestation that had not been clearly associated with infection by the human T-cell lymphotropic virus, which is a retrovirus that in most cases does not develop clinical pathologies and its symptoms may be undetected. The skin is one of the most affected organs, however until now only seborrheic dermatitis, xerosis/ichthyosis and infective dermatitis associated with HTLV-1 have been described as cutaneous clinical manifestations of this disease. Case presentation We present the case of a 36-year-old male patient with serologically documented HTLV-1 infection, who presented symptoms of diarrhea, malabsorption due to Strongyloides stercoralis, and in whom a physical examination revealed an association with generalized xerosis and palmoplantar keratoderma confirmed by skin biopsy. Other infectious etiologies and malignancy were ruled out. This clinical manifestation was managed with dermal hydration, and skin care which improved the thickened skin and make it less noticeable. Conclusions According to our experience, this is the first reported case of palmoplantar keratoderma associated with a human lymphotropic virus infection. This is a skin manifestation that has not been confirmed in conjunction with HTLV-I before. This implies that palmoplantar keratoderma is a new clinical manifestation of this infection, that should be considered in the initial approach of patients in endemic areas with these dermatological characteristics.