title: A clinico-histopathological study of appendageal skin tumors, affecting head and neck region in patients attending the dermatology opd of a tertiary care centre in eastern India.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Appendageal skin tumors (ATs) are those neoplasms that differentiate toward/arise from pilosebaceous apparatus, apocrine, or eccrine sweat glands. Pilosebaceous apparatus are concentrated in head-neck area; thus it is expected that ATs would account for a major fraction of skin tumors over this site.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study aims at finding the clinico-histopathological correlation in cases ATs in head-neck region among attendees of dermatology OPD.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional descriptive study, conducted over 1-year period. All clinically suspected cases of ATs were evaluated and subjected to histopathological examination. Confirmed cases of ATs were finally analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among twenty eight thousand four hundred sixty six new patients attending OPD, 30 suspected cases of ATs underwent histopathological examination. Histopathology was confirmatory in only 23 (76.67%) cases. Out of 23, syringoma were found in 9 (39.13%), trichoepithelioma in 6 (26.08%), syringocystadenoma papilliferum in 4 (17.39%), sebaceous gland hyperplasia in 3 (13.04%), and vellous hair cyst in 1 (4.34 %). Females (65.21%) outnumbered males (34.78%) in our study population.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  ATs of head-neck region constitute a meager population (0.08%) attending dermatology OPD, and were more common among young population. Often it is over-diagnosed clinically thus necessitating histological confirmation. Young females being cosmetically more conscious are more eager to seek advice for this condition.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Medical College, Kolkata, India.
authors.forename: Abanti
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Saha
authors.forename: Nilay K
authors.initials: NK
authors.lastname: Das
authors.forename: Ramesh C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Gharami
authors.forename: Satyendra N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Chowdhury
authors.forename: Pijush K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Datta