Syndrome de Sweet : étude rétrospective de 47 cas

Purpose

Also called acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis, Sweet's syndrome is an inflammatory disorder with a prominent cutaneous expression. It is characterized by a variety of manifestations, clinical and histological findings. The objective of this study was to describe their clinical, pathological and therapeutic characteristics.

Methods

We report on a series of 47 patients who presented a Sweet's syndrome, collected in our institution in Tunis between 1997 and 2011.

Results

The patient population consisted of 11 men and 36 women. The mean age was 47 years with extreme ranging from 28 to 74 years. An associated disorder was observed in ten patients: inflammatory disease (three cases), inflammatory bowel disease (two cases), tuberculosis (three cases) and diabetes (three cases). One case of pregnancy was observed. Cutaneous lesions consisted of erythematous plaques or nodules. Lesions were located mainly on the upper or lower extremities. All biopsy specimens demonstrated a dermal infiltrate composed predominantly of neutrophils. Fibrinoid necrosis and intramural inflammation were observed in eight cases.

Conclusion

The skin disorder can precede, follow, or appear concurrent with the diagnosis of an associated disease which requires careful surveillance.     

Profil étiologiques des thromboses veineuses profondes en milieu de médecine interne : une étude rétrospective de 318 cas

Objective

Venous thromboembolic disease is a common condition. Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism are the most common manifestation but other locations may also occur. The objectives of the study were to estimate the incidence and determine the epidemiologic, topographic and associated conditions of venous thromboembolic disease in a department of internal medicine.

Methods

A retrospective study of a series of 318 cases of DVT was conducted in Internal Medicine CHU Hedi Chaker, Sfax, during a period of 15 years (1996–2010).

Results

DVT of the lower limbs was the most common location (87%). Other sites of DVT was noted in 16.35% of cases including upper limbs (19 cases), vena cava (16 cases), cerebral veins (10 cases), portal vein (10 cases) and hepatic vein (3 cases). A risk factor of VTE was found in 274 patients (86.1%). A state of thrombophilia was retained in 203 patients (63.5%). It was a hereditary thrombophilia (22.6%), an antiphospholipids syndrome (19.1%), Behçet's disease (16.4%) and neoplasia (7.2%). The study of the distribution of venous thrombosis as the seat and etiology showed that: the antiphospholipid syndrome was the most associated conditions with the upper extremity DVT (31.7%) whereas Behçet's disease was the most frequent etiology of vena cava thrombosis (7 cases) and the cerebral vein thrombosis especially in young males.