Subcutaneous Sarcoidosis in a Nigerian female

Abstract

Sarcoidosis is relatively uncommon in indigenous black Africans, especially along the West African coast. There has not been any report of isolated cutaneous sarcoidosis from our center. We present a patient who was reviewed with an isolated ganglion-like subcutaneous swelling on the ankle region. Excision biopsy revealed a non caseating granulomatous lesion. Systemic evaluation was not remarkable and the lesion was negative for tuberculosis and fungi. The operative wound healed with the use of of a combination therapy with oral chloroquine, prednisolone, and methotrexate. We conclude that cutaneous sarcoidosis can occur in the absence of systemic disease and definitive diagnosis is by histological finding of a non caseating granuloma, when other potential causes such as tuberculosis are excluded.