Dermatology: Practical and Conceptual


Letter to the Editor  |  Dermatol Pract Concept 2014;4(4):20 89

DERMATOLOGY PRACTICAL & CONCEPTUAL
www.derm101.com

Dear Editor,

We would like to discuss on the report on “Zosteriform 

cutaneous leishmaniasis” [1] Ramot et al. reported that “der-

moscopy has proven to be an accessible and easy tool to 

diagnose such atypical presentation of cutaneous leishmani-

asis, and dermatologists in endemic areas should be familiar 

with its typical dermoscopic features” [1]. In fact, cutaneous 

leishmaniasis is an important tropical dermatological infec-

tion. To diagnose it, the practitioner has to perform labora-

tory investigation to confirm the diagnosis [2]. The use of “in 

vivo confocal microscopy” is presently mentioned as a new 

noninvasive tool to diagnose cutaneous leishmaniasis [3,4]. 

As noted by Taheri et al., the appearance by dermoscopy of 

cutaneous leishmaniasis is varied [4]. The “paronychial, annu-

lar, palmoplantar, zosteriform, erysipeloid, and sporotrichoid” 

appearance of cutaneous leishmaniasis is not common and 

can be easily missed. The limitation in diagnosis seems not 

due to limitation of the dermoscopy toll but the awareness of 

the practitioner on the disease, cutaneous leishmaniasis [5]. In 

endemic areas of cutaneous leishmaniasis, use of dermoscopy 

in the investigation of any cases of zosteriform cutaneous 

lesions to rule out cutaneous leishmaniasis is suggested.

References

1. Ramot Y, Nanova K, Alper-Pinus R, Zlotogorski A. Zosteriform 

cutaneous leishmaniasis diagnosed with the help of dermoscopy. 

Dermatol Pract Concept. 2014;4(3):10.

2. Wiwanitkit V. Interest in paromomycin for the treatment of visceral 

leishmaniasis (kala-azar). Ther Clin Risk Manag. 2012;8:323-8.

3. Alarcon I, Carrera C, Puig S, Malvehy J. In vivo confocal mi-

croscopy features of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Dermatology. 

2014;228(2):121-4.

4. Taheri AR, Pishgooei N, Maleki M, et al. Dermoscopic features 

of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Int J Dermatol. 2013;52(11):1361-6.

5. Omidian M, Mapar MA. Chronic zosteriform cutaneous leish-

maniasis. Indian J Dermatol Venereol Leprol. 2006;72(1):41-2.

Zosteriform cutaneous leishmaniasis
Sim Sai Tin1, Viroj Wiwanitkit2

1 Medical Center, Shantou, China

2 Hainan Medical University, China

Citation: Tin SS, Wiwanitkit V. Zosteriform cutaneous leishmaniasis. Dermatol Pract Concept. 2014;4(4):20. http://dx.doi.org/10.5826/
dpc.0404a20

Received: June 9, 2014; Accepted: September 8, 2014; Published: October 31, 2014

Corresponding author: Sim Sai Tin, Medical Center, Shantou, China. Email: simsaitin@gmail.com