Successful multidisciplinary treatment of the rare pathology of vulvar Crohn's disease.
Raed Al YacoubKelcie BrownMichael LadnaPublished in: BMJ case reports (2023)
A woman in her 50s with a medical history of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and hypothyroidism presented with 3 months of vaginal pain and swelling. Physical examination showed vulvar oedema and erythema, ulcerations of the inferior vulva that extended to the buttocks and introitus with erythema and superficial erosions. MR pelvis showed a fibroid in the uterus but otherwise was unremarkable. Biopsies of the vagina showed extensive acute and chronic inflammation, necrosis and granulomas without concern for malignancy, which was consistent with a diagnosis of cutaneous Crohn's disease. MR enterography, upper endoscopy and colonoscopy revealed no gastrointestinal manifestations of Crohn's. She was treated initially with corticosteroids and metronidazole as well as vulvectomy and graft placement. Azathioprine was added to her regimen due to lack of response; however, despite 6 weeks of this therapy, the ulcerations did not heal thus infliximab was initiated. After 8 weeks the lesions had completely resolved.
Keyphrases
- rheumatoid arthritis
- disease activity
- chronic pain
- liver failure
- sentinel lymph node
- physical activity
- oxidative stress
- contrast enhanced
- mental health
- ultrasound guided
- gestational age
- interstitial lung disease
- drug induced
- neuropathic pain
- early stage
- case report
- replacement therapy
- respiratory failure
- systemic lupus erythematosus
- intensive care unit
- ankylosing spondylitis
- stem cells
- systemic sclerosis
- spinal cord
- computed tomography
- radiation therapy
- newly diagnosed
- spinal cord injury
- bone marrow
- locally advanced
- rectal cancer
- extracorporeal membrane oxygenation
- smoking cessation
- neoadjuvant chemotherapy