Author(s)

David Klimpl, Thomas Manser, Mark Flemmer

Department of Internal Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, USA.

Pathergy is a unique and dramatic clinical finding of exuberant inflammation in response to local trauma. This incompletely understood phenomenon presents with sterile pustules and ulcers after minor cuts or scrapes, and can be tested by a pricking the skin with a sterile needle. Historically, pathergy was thought to be pathognomonic for Behcet’s syndrome, though it has also been described in several other inflammatory conditions such as pyoderma gangrenosum and acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis (Sweet’s syndrome). Recognizing Sweet’s syndrome specifically can be challenging due to its atypical clinical course, and understanding the relationship between Sweet’s syndrome and pathergy can offer an important diagnostic clue. We present a case of Sweet’s syndrome presenting with upper airway obstruction and pathergy. To our knowledge, this is the first documented case of Sweet’s syndrome presenting with oral pathergy.

Pathergy, Sweet’s Syndrome, Myelodysplastic Syndrome, Neutrophilic Dermatosis

Klimpl, D. , Manser, T. and Flemmer, M. (2016) Oral Pathergy in Sweet’s Syndrome Following Food Bolus Injury. Case Reports in Clinical Medicine, 5, 134-139. doi: 10.4236/crcm.2016.54025.