Cutaneous Manifestations of Lupus Erythematosus in Antananarivo (Madagascar)

Introduction: Lupus erythematosus is a serious autoimmune inflammatory disease. Mucocutaneous manifestations are themain clinical manifestations, so our aim is to determine the different cutaneous manifestations of lupus erythematosus in Antananarivo.Methods: A retrospective study was conducted over a period of 5 years from January 2007 to December 2011 in the medical derpartment of Joseph Raseta Befelatanana University Hospital.. All patients who presented lupus erythematosus were included.Results: Among 57,509 patients seen in Joseph Raseta Befelatanana University Hospital, sixty seven cases of lupus erythematosus were included. The mean age was 35.08 years [minimum: 9; maximum: 69 years]. The sex ratio was 0.06. Among these 67 patients, forty six presented cutaneous manifestations (68, 65%). As specific lesions in lupus, chronic cutaneous lupus was observed in 47.82%, acute cutaneous lupus in 30.43% and subacute cutaneous lupus in 06.52% of patients. The other dermatological manifestations found were alopecia in 52.17%, photosensitivity in 43.47%, Raynaud's phenomenon in 17.39% and bullous lesions in 06.52% of patients.Conclusion: A little difference was found in epidemiological, clinical and paraclinical aspects in lupus Malagasy patients and Africans. Lupus erythematosus is still a under-diagnosed disease in Madagascar. A deeper understanding of the cutaneous manifestations of SLE is essential for diagnosis and prognosis