CLINICAL DATA

-Clinical description:

56-year-old Brazilian woman complaining of 3 nodular lesions on the scalp, which had appeared 6 weeks before. She presented with 3 nonhealing, painful boil-like lesions, draining a serosanguineous fluid from the central pore. The lesions were accompanied by a stinging and movement sensation inside the nodule. She had recently returned from a trip to a rural area.

-Dermoscopic description:

Posterior segment of the larva with its breathing spiracles looking like bird’s feet. Those structures were seen in the center of a creamy-white body that was surrounded by black dots shaped as a thorn crown and representing small spines in a circular row.

-Comment:

Using oil as an interface fluid is an advantage, since with the occlusion the larva is forced to emerge to the skin surface, where it can be better observed. This observation must be done patiently, as it can take some minutes until the larva emerges. The oil also helps to reveal the bubbles originated by the larva breathing (see the Video)

TECHNICAL DATA

-Dermatoscope:

DermLite ProHR II

-Glass faceplate & Interface medium:

Glass and oil  (wet dermoscopy w-DS)

-Camera:

Sony W55 (7mp ; 3x)

-Magnification (dermoscope+zoom camera):

Dermoscopy 10x + Camera 3x

-Lighting:

Polarized light

AUTHOR DATA

-Date of the photo

March-31-2010

-Author/s name:

Leonardo Spagnol Abraham

-Occupation:

Dermatologist

-Place of work:

Instituto de Dermatologia Prof. Rubem David Azulay, Rio de Janeiro – Brazil

-Contact:

leosabraham@gmail.com

-References linked:

Abraham LS, Azulay-Abulafia L, Aguiar D de P, Torres F, Argenziano G. Dermoscopy features for the diagnosis of furuncular myiasis. Anais Brasileiros de Dermatologia. 2011 Feb;86(1):160-2.

-Link to the article (Free)

http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0365-05962011000100027&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en

-Note:

www.dermato-santacasa.com.br