This Article  • References  • Full text PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

J. Andrew Carlson, MD
Division of Dermatopathology and Dermatology Department of Pathology Albany Medical College, A-81 Albany, NY 12208-3479

Martin C. Mihm, MD
Boston, Mass

Arch Dermatol. 1997;133(10):1314-1315.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

We disagree with the conclusions reached by Egan et al¹ regarding the malignant nature of the 2 described melanocytic proliferations found in the background of lichen sclerosus et atrophicus (LSA). We believe these proliferations represent vulvar melanocytic nevi with histological features frequently identified in genital skin. Their histological interpretation was further confounded by secondary alterations from the "coincidental" inflammatory dermatosis LSA.

Genital melanocytic nevi, particularly vulvar nevi, show histological features that in other sites could be interpreted as malignant melanoma (MM). Vulvar nevi show pagetoid upward migration of intraepidermal melanocytes in 80% of cases.² Bridging of junctional nests with the formation of large confluent nests, mild cytologic atypia of intraepidermal melanocytes (enlarged melanocytes with increased cytoplasm), and lateral extension of the junctional component beyond the confines of the dermal melanocytic component are frequent findings in vulvar nevi and are shared with the so-called dysplastic melanocytic nevus; however, these . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?