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Background
and Aim: Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is an acquired autoimmune
disease with subepidermal blisters commonly seen in the elderly over 60 years.
Although the disease is usually manifested with tense blisters, but in some
cases generalized pruritus is the only symptom of disease, which is less
studied.
Methods: In
a retrospective study, the medical records of 416 BP patients confirmed in pathology
laboratory were evaluated for clinical findings, direct immunofluorescence
(DIF) testing for BMZ-binding IgG antibodies and histological findings.
Results: Of
the 416 confirmed BP patients, 213 were male and 203 were female. The mean
age of patients was 64.36 years. Thirty four patients at the onset of the
disease had generalized pruritus, which in the course of the disease, 29
patients also showed other symptoms of the disease. In 5 patients generalized
pruritus was seen as the only symptom. Concerning to the results of DIF, 117
(90%) patients showed autoantibody deposit, and in 13 (10%) patients the test
was negative. There was no significant relationship between DIF results and
histological findings (p> 0.05).
Conclusion: According to the findings of
this study, generalized pruritus is uncommon as the first symptom of the
disease. There was not any association between generalized pruritus and
histological observations including dermal edema, presence of eosinophils in
tissue, subepidermal blister as well as DIF results. Further studies on the
early detection of the disease are required to decrease complications of the
disease.
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