From Volume 42, Issue 6, July 2015 | Pages 584-585
Sweet's syndrome is a relatively rare but important skin condition which can affect the oral cavity. Awareness of this reactive condition is important for dentists who work in hospitals, where it is most likely to present. This report summarizes one such case and aims to introduce the reader to Sweet's syndrome.
In early 2011, a 53-year-old female patient with a 3-week history of oral ulceration was referred to Oral Medicine from Haematology at the Charles Clifford Dental Hospital. There was no history of ulceration before this episode. A few weeks previously she had presented to another hospital with a sore throat and skin lesions on her face, neck, legs and forearms. The patient had also been aware of ulcers on her palate and throat during this period. At this time, a full blood count showed haemoglobin to be 7.6g/dL, a raised WCC count of 48.9 x 109/L and neutrophil count of 22.5 x 109/L with blast cells on blood film examination (0.56 X 109/L). She had pyrexia during the following weeks, constant leukocytosis and low platelets ranging from 7 to 134 x 109/L. After extensive work-up she was diagnosed as having acute leukaemia.
Her previous medical history revealed that she had controlled hypertension and asthma, with an allergy to penicillin. She was a non-smoker and drank a minimal amount of alcohol. She worked as a school teacher and was married with two children.
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