The immunocompromised district in dermatology: A unifying pathogenic view of the regional immune dysregulation.

The immunocompromised district in dermatology: A unifying pathogenic view of the regional immune dysregulation. Clin Dermatol. 2014 Sep-Oct;32(5):569-76 Authors: Ruocco V, Ruocco E, Piccolo V, Brunetti G, Guerrera LP, Wolf R Abstract Besides the systemic immune deficiency, a sectorial default in immune control may occur in immunocompetent subjects. This regional immune defect can appear and remain confined to differently damaged skin areas, lately labeled immunocompromised districts (ICDs). An ICD is a skin area more vulnerable than the rest of the body for genetic or acquired reasons. Its vulnerability mainly consists in a local dysregulation of the immune control, which often facilitates (but sometimes hinders) the local onset of immunity-related eruptions or skin disorders. The factors responsible for localized immune dysregulation are multifarious, being represented by chronic lymphatic stasis, herpetic infections, ionizing or ultraviolet (UV) radiations, burns, all sorts of trauma (especially amputation), tattooing, intradermal vaccinations, and others of disparate nature (eg, paralytic stroke, poliomyelitis). Whatever the cause, in time an ICD may become a vulnerable site, prone to developing opportunistic infections, tumors, or dysimmune reactions (often of granulomatous type), strictly confined to the district itself; however, the opposite may also occur with systemic immune disorders or malignancies that selectively spare th...
Source: Herpes - Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Tags: Clin Dermatol Source Type: research