Paederus dermatitis in Sierra Leone

Abstract

Paederus dermatitis, a type of irritant contact dermatitis attributed to a Staphylinid beetle, is prevalent in most parts of the world. We studied 50 cases of Paederus dermatitis at the United Nations Hospital at Koidu Sierra Leone (West Africa), over a period of 6 months from Oct 2003 to Mar 2004. The objectives of the study were to determine clinical patterns of dermatitis and its response to topical steroids, with and without antibiotics. Patients with a definite history of contact with the insect were included in the study. Amongst these, 14 of the more severe cases were treated with oral prednisolone or intralesional triamcinolone acetonide. The remainder of the 36 patients were divided in two equal groups A and B. Patients in Group A were treated with topical diflucortolone valerate 0.001 percent and oral cetirizine hydrochloride; patients in group B were given oral ciprofloxacin in addition. In 50 patients studied, 43 (86%) were males and 7 (14%) were females. The neck was the most common site involved followed by face. Healing time ranged from 14 to 28 days and lesions in all the patients healed with residual dyschromia. Healing time was shorter in Group B patients in comparison with those in Group A. Paederus dermatitis in Sierra Leone is a relatively severe form of this dermatitis. The better response to a combination of topical steroids and oral antibiotics may indicate concurrent bacterial infection.