A Cutaneous Lesion Associated with Myositis

Excerpt

A distinctive cutaneous lesion was seen on the hands of eight patients with connective tissue diseases; the lesion appears to be associated with an inflammatory myopathy. A nonpruritic, hyperkeratotic eruption was accompanied by scaling, fissuring, and hyperpigmentation, giving the appearance of the calloused hands of a manual laborer (Figure 1, left and center). This rash was typically noted in a bilateral and symmetrical distribution along the ulnar aspect of the thumb and the radial aspect of the fingers, most prominently on the index and middle fingers, with occasional extension to the palmar surfaces. Only one patient was employed as a