Cutaneous polyarteritis nodosa: A rare cause of chronic ulcers [Kutane Polyarteriitis nodosa: Eine seltene Ursache chronischer Ulzera]

Cutaneous polyarteritis nodosa, a special form of polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) without systemic involvement, is classified as one of the ANCA-negative vasculitides of small and medium-sized vessels. It is a very rare disease with unknown etiology and occurs more commonly in women over the age of 40. Typical skin lesions are subcutaneous nodules, livedo racemosa, and ulcerations. We report the case of a 46-year-old woman presenting to our outpatient department who reported having very painful ulcerations of the lower legs with unknown origin for 6 months. © 2015, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.