Factitial traumatic panniculitis

We report five cases of factitial panniculitis produced by blunt trauma. Localized forms include Secrétan's syndrome and l'oedeme bleu, which are usually unilateral and involve the hand and forearm, respectively. When the lesions are more generally distributed, the self-induced nature may be less apparent. These patients may have been diagnosed as having Weber-Christian disease, pancreatic fat necrosis, or superficial thrombophlebitis. The microscopic picture of organizing hematoma may be supplemented by the appearance of amorphous polysaccharide masses commingled with iron pigment.