ERYTHRODERMA - A CLINICOPATHOLOGICAL STUDY OF 56 CASES

Background and Design: Erythroderma may be the result of many differen t causes. There are several publications on this subject, most of them from England, the United States, and the Scandinavian countries repor ting a different incidence of each etiologic group. Our objective has been to determine the frequency of erythroderma in. our environment, i ts cause, and patient evolution. We reviewed the clinical, laboratory, and biopsy material of 56 patients diagnosed with erythroderma who we re treated in our department in the last 8 years (1984 through 1991). Patients were followed up to know the evolution of the erythroderma. R esults: The male-female ratio was 4:1. The mean age at diagnosis was 5 7 years. Dermatoses were the most frequent cause of erythroderma (62.5 %), followed by topical or systemic drug reactions (16%), and cutaneou s T-cell lymphomas (12.5%). Follow-up information was obtained from 42 patients (66%). Eight patients died (19%), but only in three cases wa s death directly related to erythroderma (7.14%). The group associated with the best prognosis was that related to drugs. The best clinicohi stologic correlation was found in cutaneous T-cell lymphoma-related er ythroderma. Conclusions: Erythroderma of unknown cause and protracted course may be secondary to senile atopic dermatitis, intake of drugs o verlooked by the patients, and patients who are in slow progression to cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. Close follow-up of erythrodermas of unknow n cause by repeating cutaneous biopsies will in time allow an early di agnosis in patients in the latter group.