Atypical herpes simplex can mimic a flare of disease activity in patients with pemphigus vulgaris.
We present a 69-year-old white woman with pemphigus vulgaris limited to the oral mucosa who presented with oral pain and difficulty swallowing of 2 days duration, followed by multiple irregular ulcers arising from normal mucosa with no grouping of individual lesions--herpes simplex should be considered in the differential diagnosis of lesions that appear suddenly in patients with PV, particularly if the lesions fail to respond to an increased dose of corticosteroids.
Hale
E K
EK
The Ronald O. Perelman Department of Dermatology, N.Y.U. School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, USA.
Bystryn
J C
JC
D000368:Aged; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003680:Deglutition Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D009059:Mouth Diseases / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D019226:Oral Ulcer / Q000209:etiology; D010392:Pemphigus / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D011241:Prednisone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D013283:Stomatitis, Herpetic / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis
D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D005938:Glucocorticoids; D011241:Prednisone