Abstract :
Background: A variety of clinical phenotypes are observed in dermatological illnesses, which can occasionally make diagnosis challenging. Our study aimed to conduct a retrospective analysis of dermatopathological correlation and highlight its significance in establishing an accurate diagnosis.
Materials and Methods: Retrospective analysis was done on histopathological data gathered from a tertiary health care centre over a period of 18 months. To facilitate analysis, the results were categorised into various groups.
Results: Of the 336 cases that were examined in total, microbial infections accounted for the majority (33.93%, n = 114/336). Non-infectious erythematous papular and squamous disease (18.75% n = 63/336) and non-infectious vesiculobullous and vesicopustular disease (11.31% n = 38/336) were the other two prevalent groups. The least common categories were inflammatory disease of subcutis (0.3% n = 1/336) and disorder associated with physical agent (0.3% n = 1/336). The histological results were generally in agreement with the clinical observations (75.60 percent, n = 253/336). Partial concordance and discordance was seen in 10.12% (34/336) and 6.25% (21/336) cases respectively. Early histopathological diagnosis and clinicopathological correlation helped in timely management of partially concordant and discordant cases.
Conclusion: This study highlights the value of skin biopsies as an easy, reasonably priced, and useful tool in a dermatologist's toolbox. Histopathological analysis distinguishes between illnesses with similar morphologies, hence preventing misdiagnosis. Histopathology was useful in diagnosing a number of neoplastic disorders and in determining the progression or resolution of diseases like leprosy. Discordant cases were timely managed with the help of histopathological and clinical correlation.
Keyword :
Skin biopsy, Dermatopathology, Dermatology