Rutoside and Ascorbic Acid in the Treatment of Schamberg Pigmented Purpuric Dermatosis

Alexandra J Morquette,Shoshana K Grossman,Jason B Lee,Sylvia Hsu

doi:10.7759/cureus.14592

Alexandra J Morquette, Shoshana K Grossman + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.14592

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Journal: Cureus	Publication Date: Apr 20, 2021
Citations: 3	License type: cc-by

Affiliation: Temple University

Abstract

Schamberg disease is a type of pigmented purpuric dermatosis (PPD), which is a benign cutaneous capillaritis characterized by macules and patches most commonly found on the lower extremities. Rutoside and ascorbic acid have been shown in previous cases to be efficacious in the treatment of PPD lesions due to their free radical scavenging effect on capillaries. We present the case of a 19-year-old woman with Schamberg disease who achieved complete clearance of lesions within four months of daily rutoside and ascorbic acid treatment. The goal of this case report is to further demonstrate the effectiveness of this treatment and to call for investigation of its use as a standard of care in PPD.

Highlights

The most common type of pigmented purpuric dermatosis (PPD), is a capillaritis characterized by reddish-brown macules and patches, most commonly distributed on the lower legs, but may appear on other parts of the body [1,2,3]
Recent studies have shown that the use of rutoside and ascorbic acid has been effective in the treatment of PPD [4,5]
We present a patient with PPD who experienced marked improvement with oral rutoside and ascorbic acid therapy

Summary

Introduction

The most common type of pigmented purpuric dermatosis (PPD), is a capillaritis characterized by reddish-brown macules and patches, most commonly distributed on the lower legs, but may appear on other parts of the body [1,2,3]. Recent studies have shown that the use of rutoside and ascorbic acid has been effective in the treatment of PPD [4,5]. Physical examination consisted of non-blanching erythematous and brown papules and macules that were most apparent on the lower extremities (Figure 1). Histopathology evaluation revealed superficial perivascular infiltration of lymphocytes with extravasated erythrocytes, consistent with Schamberg disease (Figure 2). At the 1.5-month follow-up, the patient endorsed some improvement of her lesions with the 10-day taper of prednisone. At that time, she was initiated on oral ascorbic acid 500 mg twice daily and oral rutoside 50 mg twice daily.

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