Diagnostic difficulties of self-destructive dermatoses

Diagnostic difficulties of self-destructive dermatoses

M.M. Tlish, M.I. Kartashevskaya, T.G. Kuznetsova, F.A. Psavok

Kuban State Medical University, Krasnodar

At present, the problem of self-destructive dermatoses has become more relevant due to an increase in the number of patients. The occurrence of this pathology in different age categories, increasing severity of self-injuries due to their erroneous or late diagnosis has a negative impact on the patient’s life quality and can lead to severe, disabling conditions. The clinical manifestations of mental pathology in dermatology are very diverse, which leads to difficulties and errors in the diagnosis of these conditions, gradually causing severe social patient maladaptation.

Patients with psychogenic dermatoses commonly visit a dermatologist at first. The most difficult for diagnosing are mental disorders accompanied by skin self-destruction, such as pathomimia, neurotic excoriation, and dermatozoic delirium. The article describes the difficulties in diagnosing self-destructive dermatoses and the peculiarities of patient  attendance at the dermatologist. Also, the article presents in-house clinical observations and the problems of patient management. The importance of close interdisciplinary interaction between skin and STDs physician and psychiatrist is shown for the effective patient care in self-destructive dermatoses.

Keywords: self-destructive dermatoses, erroneous diagnosis, pathomimia, neurotic excoriation, dermatozoic delirium.

For citation: Tlish M.M., Kartashevskaya M.I., Kuznetsova T.G., Psavok F.A. Diagnostic difficulties of self-destructive dermatoses. RMJ. Medical Review. 2019;12:39–41.