Cutaneous fibroses induced by Borrelia burgdorferi

Abstract

Three cases of chronic infection with Borrelia burgdorferi are described. The patients presented with nodular or discoid fibrosis, partly in conjunction with acrodermatitis chronica atrophicans (ACA). Juxta-articular fibrotic nodules may develop within a few months of the onset of ACA. Nodular, discoid morphoea-like, and widespread cutaneous fibroses in chronic Borrelia infection may be provoked by trauma, surgery or electromagnetic radiation. They respond well to antibiotic therapy. These lesions offer an in vivo model for studying the evolution of immunologically induced fibrosis.