Unusual eruption as a presenting symptom of cat scratch disease

Cat scratch disease (CSD) is a common infectious cause of subacute regional lymphadenopathy. Bartonella henselae is the principal etiologic agent. Abo ut 10% of CSD patients experience atypical manifestations, including rashes . The most common cutaneous manifestation of CSD is a papule at the inocula tion site. We report a case of CSD presenting with an eruption on the upper trunk, reminiscent of Sweet's syndrome, accompanied by lymphadenopathy, ar thralgia, and fever. Response to systemic corticosteroids was remarkable. H istopathologic findings refuted the diagnosis of Sweet's syndrome. Identifi cation of anti-B henselae antibodies and B henselae DNA in the affected lym ph node confirmed the diagnosis of CSD. This is a first report of extensive papuloedematous eruption as a cutaneous manifestation of CSD. Accurate dia gnosis is possible due to the availability of serological tests and DNA amp lification techniques.