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Document Details : Title: Cutaneous manifestations of internal diseases Author(s): VAN HECKE E Journal: Acta Clinica Belgica Volume: 58 Issue: 5 Date: 2003 Pages: 302-307 DOI: 10.2143/ACB.58.5.1002761 Abstract : Collaboration between specialists is necessary for good practice of medicine. The dermatological examination, mainly based on visual characteristics, can greatly help other specialisms when confronted with a seemingly futile skin anomaly. We discuss the various cutaneous features of some metabolic and infectious diseases, the pitfalls in diagnosing lupus erythematosus without knowledge of skin disease and the relationship of dermatological diseases as cutaneous vasculitis, pyoderma gangrenosum, Sweet’s syndrome, pemphigus and more to internal disease. The practice of dermatology is based upon a visual approach to clinical disease. Dermatologists develop a memory of images. Each time, they see a new lesion, they integrate the new image in the existing frame of their medical memory. In many cases this process leads to an instant diagnosis. Since skin disease can give important clues to the diagnosis of many systemic diseases, it is rewarding to ask for dermatological advice when confronted with a skin anomaly. It can save considerable time to come to a diagnosis, not to mention the savings on unnecessary costly examinations. In many instances, the dermatologic signs are diagnostic for a well defined disease. In that case, the dermatologist will offer not only a dermatologic but also the internal diagnosis. In other instances however, a dermatological disease is present of which is known that eventually one or more internal diseases might be behind it. Here, a more general medical work-up will be needed. Many books and chapters in textbooks have beenwritten on this subject. This paper will discuss dermatological diseases associated with malignancies, vascular diseases, metabolic diseases, infections, lupus erythematosus and with gastro-intestinal diseases. |
