Carotenodermia.

Abstract

<h3>To the Editor.—</h3> Carotenodermia, the yellow cutaneous pigmentation accompanying carotenemia, has been regarded as a significant physical finding, but a harmless condition. An adolescent patient with hypothyroidism has called attention to change in sun tanning which possibly resulted from carotenodermia. Report of a Case The patient, a fair-complexioned, 17½-year-old girl, was first seen at the Yale-New Haven Medical Center in early 1971. Her medical history was suggestive of hypothyroidism and included disproportionately increased weight for height, poor appetite, dry skin, cold intolerance, and less energy than that of her peers. Growth curves of height and annual height increments indicated that her illness might have begun about age 11, three years prior to menarche. The patient's height was 1.53 m (5 ft) and her weight was 58.7 kg (129 lb). Her skin was yellow, dry, coarse, and pale. Her sclerae and mucous membranes were not yellow. Laboratory studies revealed a