Neutrophilic dermatosis of the hands after influenza vaccination

Abstract

An otherwise healthy 72-year-old man presented with a painful eruption composed of grouped hemorrhagic purulent blisters on erythematous plaques, on both palms of his hands, which appeared 12.h after he had been vaccinated against influenza. Based on the patient's history, physical examination, histopathological and laboratory findings, the diagnosis of neutrophilic dermatosis of the hands (NDH) was made. NDH is currently considered a distributional variant of Sweet's syndrome (SS). It is identical to atypical pyoderma gangrenosum (PG) and pustular vasculitis of the hands. There are only seven reported cases of SS after vaccination, none of them with lesions confined solely to the palms or soles. Our current case is the third one of SS following influenza vaccination. © Journal compilation © 2009 International Society of Dermatology.