title: Chromoblastomycosis: report of two cases from Nepal.
abstract: Chromoblastomycosis is a chronic fungal infection of the skin and subcutaneous tissue caused by dematiaceous fungi. The first case, a 67-year-old male farmer, presented with itchy hyperkeratotic, scaly plaques with scarring and black dots on the lateral aspects of his left arm and dorsum of his left hand of 28 years duration. The case was clinically diagnosed as chromoblastomycosis. The second case, a 75-year-old farmer, presented with erythematous, crusted, scaly plaques on the dorsum of the left foot of 30 years duration. Initially, a clinical diagnosis of lupus vulgaris was made, but treatment with anti tuberculosis therapy showed no improvement. On the basis of histopathological examinations of skin biopsies and isolation of fungus on culture, both cases were diagnosed as chromoblastomycosis. To the best of our knowledge, these two cases are the first case reports of chromoblastomycosis from Nepal and are presented for their academic interest.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Nepal.
authors.forename: Arun
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Agarwalla
authors.forename: Basudha
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Khanal
authors.forename: Vijay K
authors.initials: VK
authors.lastname: Garg
authors.forename: Sudha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Agrawal
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jacob
authors.forename: Sudha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rani
authors.forename: Manorama
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Deb
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D002862:Chromoblastomycosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D002963:Cladosporium / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006229:Hand Dermatoses / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D017964:Itraconazole / Q000008:administration & dosage; D007868:Leg Dermatoses / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D009390:Nepal; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D017964:Itraconazole