ORIGINAL ARTICLES   

Giornale Italiano di Dermatologia e Venereologia 1998 August;133(4):247-50

Copyright © 1998 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: Italian

Areas of involvement in classic Kaposi’s sarcoma. Study of 200 cases

Montesu M. A., Rosella M., Cottoni F.

Università degli Studi - Sassari, Istituto di Clinica Dermatologica

Background. Classic Kaposi’s sarcoma (CKS) is characterized by the initial appearance of angiomatoid lesions on the lower limbs. Other areas are less frequently involved as initial lesion sites.
Methods. The results of a study on initial lesion sites and clinical observations of 200 CKS patients (154 men and 46 women; age-range: 42-101 yrs) are reported. These findings confirm that the initial lesion is most often reported on the lower limbs. Each patient was clinically evaluated on admittance to esta-blish the exact location of the lesions; they also underwent laboratory tests, chest X-ray and echography in order to see if internal organs were affected. It was also discussed whether age could be a factor influencing initial lesion site, following the observation that AIDS-associated KS patients, who are usually younger than those with the classic form, present initial lesion sites considered atypical for the latter.
Results. Patients under the age of 60 were compared with those over and no statistically significant difference was found.
Conclusions. No satisfactory explanation has as yet been formulated for the particular distribution of initial lesion sites in CKS. However, anatomical or physiological factors, peculiar to the various sites, could be of importance.