Linear scleroderma en coup de sabre - a different clinical presentation.

Abstract

Localized scleroderma (LoS) is a rare condition featuring skin and underlying tissue sclerosis not usually compromising other systems. A subtype of LoS including lesions in the head is further classified as linear scleroderma en coup de sabre (LSeCS). Neurological involvement in LSeCS can reach up to 4% and may include seizures. Cutaneous lesions usually emerge before neurologic symptoms and these oftentimes manifest with intracranial abnormalities. We describe a case of an 11-year-old boy with an onset of self-limited unexplained seizures at 20-months of life. During the first year of follow-up, a midline frontoparietal lesion with alopecia and hypopigmentation was noted and a referral to dermatology and pediatric rheumatology consultation was made. A diagnosis of LEsCS was made. A 10-year follow-up of this patient is presented with favorable outcome. LSeCS is a rare form of LoS most frequently diagnosed in children and adolescents. A meticulous examination of these patients should be performed with particular attention to the face and scalp. The mainstay therapeutical approach is based on methotrexate and corticosteroids. Neurologic abnormalities associated with skin lesions on the head should should raise clinical suspicion of LSeCS.