Recurrent painful hand crisis in a four-year-old girl, revealing an erythropoietic protoporphyria.
We report the case of a 4-year-old girl, who had been suffering for 2 years from a recurrent, painful crisis affecting both hands, following sun exposure. There were no obvious cutaneous lesions, which initially caused us to consider a diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder. However, the diagnosis of erythropoietic protoporphyria was then established by the demonstration of elevated levels of free protoporphyrin in erythrocytes. The present case illustrates the effectiveness of beta-carotene associated with canthaxanthin in erythropoietic protoporphyria.
Labrousse
A L
AL
Service de Dermatologie, Hôpital Robert-Debré, avenue du Général-Koenig, 51092 Reims, France.
Salmon-Ehr
V
V
Eschard
C
C
Kalis
B
B
Leonard
F
F
Bernard
P
P
D000975:Antioxidants / Q000008:administration & dosage; D016644:Canthaxanthin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006225:Hand; D006801:Humans; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology*; D010787:Photosensitivity Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy; D017121:Porphyria, Hepatoerythropoietic / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy; D012008:Recurrence; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D019207:beta Carotene / Q000008:administration & dosage
D000975:Antioxidants; D019207:beta Carotene; D016644:Canthaxanthin