Esophageal Nikolsky’s Sign: A Rare Finding in a Patient with Bullous Pemphigoid

Abstract

Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is a chronic relapsing autoimmune blistering disease that typically affects middle-age and elderly patients. It can manifest with varying degrees of mucosal involvement in addition to characteristic skin findings. However, esophageal involvement is very rare. We report a case of a 57-year-old female with BP who presented with epigastric pain and melena. She underwent an esophagogastroduodenoscopy which induced bullae seen only upon withdrawal of the endoscope. This finding is analogous to the dermatological finding of Nikolsky’s sign. Gentle insertion and withdrawal of the endoscope is recommended to reduce the risk of bullae formation and mucosal injury.

Keywords

• bullous pemphigoid
• melena
• esophagogastroduodenoscopy
• esophageal nikolsky’s sign