pemphigus erythematosus


pemphigus

 [pem´fĭ-gus] any of a group of diseases characterized by successive crops of large bullae (“water blisters”). Although rare, they are serious and require prompt treatment. The cause is unknown; they seem to occur only in adults and can occur in acute or chronic form. The term is often used alone to refer to pemphigus vulgaris" >pemphigus vulgaris.
Clusters of blisters usually appear first near or inside the nose and mouth and then gradually spread over the skin of the rest of the body. When the blisters burst, they leave round patches of raw and tender skin. The skin itches, burns and gives off an offensive odor. The patient loses appetite and weight. If the disease is allowed to progress, it may cause extreme weakness, prostration and shock, accompanied by chills, sweating, fever, and often pneumonia.
The patient must be hospitalized from the beginning and given antibiotics and sometimes blood transfusions. Intense discomfort is present and the patient may need to suck anesthetic tablets to allay pain around the mouth while eating. Progress has been made in the treatment of this disease through the persistent use of cortisone, administered orally, and of the pituitary extract ACTH, administered intramuscularly. Fatalities, once fairly common, now can usually be averted. The disease is difficult to control, however, and therapy sometimes must be maintained for years to prevent continuing attacks.benign familial pemphigus a hereditary, recurrent vesiculobullous dermatitis, usually involving the axillae, groin, and neck, with crops of lesions that regress over several weeks or months. Called also Hailey-Hailey disease.pemphigus erythemato´sus a variant of pemphigus foliaceus in which the lesions, limited to the face and chest, resemble those of disseminated lupus erythematosus.pemphigus folia´ceus a superficial, relatively mild and chronic form of pemphigus, usually occurring in the fourth and fifth decades of life, and characterized by the development of small flaccid bullae that rupture and crust and localized or generalized exfoliation. The lesions may be found on the scalp, face, and trunk, or they may spread to become generalized.pemphigus ve´getans a variant of pemphigus vulgaris in which the bullae are replaced by large wartlike vegetative masses.pemphigus vulga´ris the most common and severe form of pemphigus, usually occurring between the ages of 40 and 60, characterized by the chronic development of flaccid, easily ruptured bullae upon apparently normal skin and mucous membranes, beginning focally but progressing to become generalized, leaving large, weeping, denuded surfaces that become partially crusted over with little or no tendency to heal and that enlarge by confluence. In untreated cases, sepsis, cachexia, and electrolyte imbalance may occur and lead to death.

pem·phi·gus er·y·the·ma·to·sus

an eruption involving sun-exposed skin, especially the face; the lesions are scaling erythematous macules and blebs, combining the clinical features of both lupus erythematosus and pemphigus vulgaris; bullae are subcorneal; probably a variant of pemphigus foliaceus, occasionally penicillamine-induced. Synonym(s): Senear-Usher disease, Senear-Usher syndrome

pem·phi·gus er·y·the·ma·to·sus

(pem'fi-gŭs er'i-thē'mă-tō'sŭs) An eruption involving sun-exposed skin, especially the face; the lesions are scaling erythematous macules and blebs.

Senear,

Francis E., U.S. dermatologist, 1889-1958. Senear-Usher disease - Synonym(s): Senear-Usher syndromeSenear-Usher syndrome - an eruption involving sun-exposed skin, especially the face. Synonym(s): pemphigus erythematosus; Senear-Usher disease