Abstrato

Post chikungunya pigmentation in a segmental pattern: A rare presentation

Ishmeet Kaur, Vijay Gandhi, Deepak Jakhar, Sonal Sharma

Chikungunya is a viral infection caused by chikungunya virus belonging to family Togaviridae, transmitted by Aedes mosquitoe. It presents with acute onset of fever with debilitating arthralgia/ arthritis. A spectrum of muco-cutanous manifestations have been reported in the literature. We report a case of a 35 years old female presented with non-progressive hyperpigmented macules in a segmental pattern over the left side of the neck for the past 1 month. She had a preceding history of chikungunya diagnosed on clinical and serological grounds just 2 weeks prior to the onset of pigmentation. Histopathology showed increased melanin deposition in the basal layer of the epidermis with presence of melanophages in the upper dermis. There was no basal cell vacuolization or inflammatory infiltrates. These findings were consistent with a diagnosis of post chikungunya pigmentation. Patient responded well to treatment of topical 2% hydroquinone. This unique segmental presentation of post chikungunya pigmentation must be kept in mind when a patient presents with an acquired segmental hyperpigmentary disorder of unknown origin.