Comparison of Clinicopathological Findings of Spitz Nevus in Pediatric and Adult Patients

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study is to evaluate the demographic characteristics of patients diagnosed with Spitz nevus and to investigate potential distinctions in clinicopathological findings of Spitz nevi in relation to age and location of the lesion. Materials and Methods: Clinical and histopathological findings of 32 patients who were diagnosed with Spitz nevus from our archives between 2010 and 2020 were obtained and evaluated retrospectively. Results: A total of 32 patients were included, of whom 19 (59.4%) were female and 15 (40.6%) were under the age of 18 years. Most of the lesions (14, 43.7%) were located on the upper extremity, followed by the lower extremity and the head and neck. The most common histological subtype was the compound variant. In the pediatric age group, the majority of the lesions were located on the upper extremity, and the most common histological subtypes were pigmented and compound variant. In adults, the lesions were chiefly located on the lower extremitiy and the most common histological subtype was the desmoplastic variant. Conclusion: In this study, it was found that the location of the lesions and histopathological subtypes of Spitz nevi may differ in children and adults. Further studies incorporating genetic data and involving larger cohorts of patients are needed in order to determine these differences between age groups more clearly. The small sample size is the main limitation of this study