Morbihan disease: A diagnostic dilemma: two cases with successful resolution

Omalizumab in the treatment of Morbihan syndrome in an adolescent girl - case report and literature review

Morbihan syndrome (MS) is characterized by solid facial edema, usually related to rosacea or acne vulgaris. The facial edema deforms the patient's features, can impair peripheral vision, and affects quality of life. Its pathophysiology remains unclear. The disease usually has a slow and chronic course. MS most commonly affects middle-aged Caucasian men with rosacea and is rare in people below 20 years of age. MS is a diagnosis of exclusion. There is no standard treatment for MS, though systemic isotretinoin and antihistamines are mainly used. We present the case of an adolescent girl with MS nonresponding to 19 months of isotretinoin treatment with add-on antihistamines. Therapy with monthly administration of omalizumab (anti-IgE) for 6 months was an effective therapeutic option, improving the quality of life. Our case is the second description of omalizumab use in Morbihan syndrome, the first in an adolescent.

Morbihan Disease: A Diagnostic and Therapeutic Challenge

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Diagnosis and Treatment of Morbihan's Disease: A Practical Approach based on Review of the Literature

Background

Morbihan's disease (MD), also known as solid persistent facial edema, solid facial lymphedema or rosacea lymphedema, is a rare condition.

Objective

Despite existing case reports and literature reviews, clinical guidance for diagnosis and management is lacking. This review aims to provide comprehensive information on the etiology, differential diagnoses, diagnostics, and management of MD.

Methods

PubMed was searched up to April 2023 for relevant studies on MD with no language restriction. Furthermore, references were checked of found reports.

Results

A comprehensive overview of the literature and clinical guidance for MD. We found 95 studies involving 166 patients (118 male, 46 female and 2 gender unreported) evaluating management options, categorized into: isotretinoin (16 studies), isotretinoin plus antihistamines (8), isotretinoin plus corticosteroids (8), antibiotics (13), antibiotics plus corticosteroids (7), surgical debulking (10) and miscellaneous/combination treatments (43). Some studies contributed to two categories. Treatment with isotretinoin as monotherapy or combined with antihistamines, doxycycline or minocycline as well as surgical procedures demonstrated mostly satisfactory results, although recurrences were common. Longer treatment duration, of at least 6 to 12 months, is recommended for pharmacological treatments. Adding systemic or intralesional corticosteroids to previous treatments may be beneficial. Manual lymph drainage seems to contribute to satisfying result.

Limitations

This is not a systematic review and randomized controlled trials are lacking.

Conclusion

Diagnosis of MD is based on specific clinical features and excluding diseases with similar appearance. Prolonged treatment is often necessary to obtain satisfactory results, which might be limited to a partial and/or temporary response.

Effect of High-Intensity Macro-Focused Ultrasound on a Case of Morbihan Disease

Morbihan disease is a rare entity involving the upper two-thirds of the face and characterized by chronic erythematous edema, which is recalcitrant to the traditional therapy of rosacea. We report a case of Morbihan disease effectively treated with macro-focused high-intensity focus ultrasound (MF-HIFU). After MF-HIFU treatment, an obvious reduction in swelling was observed with decreased erythema and hyperalgesia. In addition, in-vitro experiments were conducted to measure the actual temperature of the skin tissue under the epidermis. The results of the in-vitro experiments showed that the temperature plateau in the skin sample was reached at approximately 42°C after 5-min treatment or longer. MF-HIFU might be a promising energy-based therapy for Morbihan disease.

Successful treatment of Morbihan disease with total glucosides of paeony: A case report

BACKGROUND

Morbihan disease is a rare cutaneous disorder characterized by non-pitting edema and erythema of the upper two-thirds of the face. In severe cases, orbital and facial contour changes may affect the visual field, and there is no guideline for the standard treatment of this disease. Existing treatment methods have been reported to be associated with long medication cycle, easy recurrence after drug withdrawal, and multiple adverse reactions.

CASE SUMMARY

A 55-year-old Chinese woman presented to our hospital with non-pitting edema and erythema of the upper two thirds of her face for 5 mo. Physical examination showed obvious edema and erythema on the upper face. The boundary was unclear, the lesions were hard and non-pitting, and infiltration was obvious by touch. Pathological examination revealed mild hyperkeratosis of the epidermis, nodular inflammatory lesions in the dermis, epithelioid granuloma, and inflammatory cell infiltration with lymphocytes and histiocytes around skin appendages and blood vessels. Alcian blue staining, acid fast staining, silver staining and periodic acid-Schiff staining were negative. The patient was diagnosed with Morbihan disease. She was treated with prednisone acetate and tripterygium wilfordii polyglycoside tablets for 4 mo, and the edema was slightly reduced, but transaminase levels were significantly increased. Compound glycyrrhizin capsules were administered for liver protection for 1 mo; however, facial edema did not significantly improve and transaminase levels continued to increase. Total glucosides of paeony capsules were then administered for 4 mo, and transaminase level returned to normal and the patient’s facial edema disappeared completely.

CONCLUSION

Total glucosides of paeony has a remarkable effect in Morbihan disease, without adverse reactions.

Treatment of Trigeminal Neuralgia With Stereotactic Radiosurgery Improved Symptoms of Morbihan Syndrome

Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is a neuropathic pain disorder characterized by paroxysmal pain in the maxillary and mandibular regions of the face. Morbihan syndrome is a disease that classically presents with dermatologic findings, including progressive facial edema and erythema. There are no previous reports of the onset of trigeminal neuralgia with Morbihan syndrome or previous reports describing improvement in symptoms of Morbihan syndrome with treatment of trigeminal neuralgia. We describe the case of a 62-year-old female who presented with trigeminal neuralgia and shortly thereafter developed significant facial edema and was diagnosed with Morbihan syndrome. The neuralgia was refractory to medical management and was effectively treated with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). This coincided with an improvement in her Morbihan syndrome that is now controlled following stereotactic radiosurgery and continued lymphatic massage.

Dermatology: how to manage acne vulgaris

Background

Acne vulgaris is the most common skin disease that can lead to disfigurement and psychological distress. This article aims to provide a narrative updated review on the management of acne vulgaris.

Methods

A PubMed search was performed with Clinical Queries using the key term “acne”. The search strategy included clinical trials, meta-analyses, randomized controlled trials, observational studies and reviews. The search was restricted to articles published in English.

Results

Treatments of acne include proper skin care, topical medications, oral medications and procedural therapies. Topical agents are the first-line treatment for mild-to-moderate acne and can be used as combination therapy for more severe acne. Systemic therapies are usually prescribed for the initial treatment of moderate-to-severe acne as well as for acne that is refractory to topical therapies.

Conclusion

Topical retinoids are the drugs of choice for the treatment and maintenance therapy of patients with mild-to-moderate acne vulgaris. Depending on the severity of the acne, topical retinoids may be used alone or in combination with benzoyl peroxide and topical or oral antibiotics. Oral antibiotics are an important therapy for inflammatory acne unresponsive to topical therapy. Neither topical nor oral antibiotics should be used as monotherapy. Oral contraceptives and/or spironolactone are useful for many women with acne. Oral isotretinoin is the drug of choice for severe, extensive, nodular acne vulgaris but is also often used in moderate cases where scarring is evident, acne-related psychosocial distress is significant or other treatment modalities have failed.