What is axillary granular parakeratosis?
Granular parakeratosis is an uncommon red and scaly skin condition that mainly affects body folds, most often the armpits. It has a characteristic appearance under the microscope. It is also called hyperkeratotic flexural erythema and may be the same condition as recurrent flexural pellagroid dermatitis [1].
What causes granular parakeratosis?
The etiology of granular parakeratosis is uncertain, but Metze and Rütten defended the hypothesis, first proposed by Northcutt et al, that a basic defect exists in the processing of profilaggrin to filaggrin, which maintains the keratohyaline granules in the stratum corneum during cornification.
How long does granular parakeratosis last?
Granular parakeratosis most often is self-limiting and will resolve in a period of one month to one year. [2][6] However, cases have been reported of granular parakeratosis persisting or chronically recurring for up to 20 years. [15] The condition is not associated with malignancy or any systemic diseases.
How do you get rid of granular parakeratosis?
Isotretinoin [45, 46] and tretinoin have been reported as effective for granular parakeratosis. Calcipotriene has been used to treat granular parakeratosis. Additional vitamin D-3 analogs, such as maxacalcitol, have been used effectively for treatment.
What is parakeratosis caused by?
The disease is caused by a relative deficiency of zinc. The deficiency is usually caused by feeding an unbalanced diet that has one or more of the following features: excessive calcium; excessive phytic acid (sometimes present in soybean protein); or a low concentration of essential fatty acids.
What does parakeratosis mean?
Parakeratosis is defined as the presence of nucleated keratinocytes in the stratum corneum, and is thought to be due to accelerated keratinocytic turnover. 1. Parakeratosis may occur in both benign skin diseases (such as various dermatitides) and malignant neoplasms (such as squamous cell carcinoma).
How can you prevent parakeratosis?
Sometimes a change in ration appears to be beneficial. These observations sug- gest that parakeratosis is not due to a simple zinc deficiency but is related to other nutrients. In any event, adding zinc to the ration is at present the most promising prevention and treatment known.
What is the deficiency of parakeratosis?
Parakeratosis is caused by deficiency of zinc and essential fatty acids in the diet. Additional causes include high levels of calcium decreasing zinc absorption.
What is the difference between hyperkeratosis and parakeratosis?
Orthokeratotic hyperkeratosis refers to the thickening of the keratin layer with preserved keratinocyte maturation, while parakeratotic hyperkeratosis shows retained nuclei as a sign of delayed maturation of keratinocytes.
What is parakeratosis histology?
Parakeratosis is a mode of keratinization characterized by the retention of nuclei in the stratum corneum. In mucous membranes, parakeratosis is normal. In the skin, this process leads to the abnormal replacement of annular squames with nucleated cells.
What does parakeratosis look like?
Parakeratosis most often is caused by consumption of excessive calcium. Affected pigs show few signs of illness other than skin lesions and reduced growth rate. Initial lesions appear as reddened macules and papules on the ventrolateral abdomen and medial surface of the thighs; these lesions often go unobserved.
What causes parakeratosis?