Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2023 May 25;15(5):e39498.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.39498. eCollection 2023 May.

Prurigo Pigmentosa Induced by a Ketogenic Diet

Aditya Nellore  1   2 , Eamonn Maher  3   1 , Mallory Abate  4   1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Prurigo Pigmentosa Induced by a Ketogenic Diet

Aditya Nellore et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Prurigo pigmentosa is an important cause of reticular pruritic rash that has been under-reported in the United States. To ensure proper patient care, it is important for dermatologists to be aware of its presentations and associated factors. Here, we present an uncommon case of prurigo pigmentosa induced by a ketogenic diet and discuss the links between this condition and the state of ketosis, a relationship every provider should be conscious of.

Keywords: dermatology; ketogenic diet; ketosis; prurigo pigmentosa; skin.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Prurigo pigmentosa. Numerous reticulated pink papules with mild scale on the mid-back.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Punch biopsy of lesions on the patient’s back. Focal parakeratosis, scattered dyskeratotic keratinocytes, and melanophages around the superficial vascular plexus (H&E, 4×).
Figure 3
Figure 3. Mid-dermal perivascular lymphocytic infiltrate with scattered eosinophils (H&E, 400×).
Figure 4
Figure 4. Patient’s mid-back one month after reintroducing carbohydrates into her diet.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Prurigo pigmentosa - clinical observations of our 14 cases. Nagashima M. J Dermatol. 1978;5:61–67. - PubMed
    1. Prurigo pigmentosa. Shannon JF, Weedon D, Sharkey MP. Australas J Dermatol. 2006;47:289–290. - PubMed
    1. Prurigo pigmentosa: a clinicopathological report of three middle eastern patients. Almaani N, Al-Tarawneh AH, Msallam H. Case Rep Dermatol Med. 2018;2018 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Prurigo pigmentosa following ketogenic diet and bariatric surgery: a growing association. Alshaya MA, Turkmani MG, Alissa AM. JAAD Case Rep. 2019;5:504–507. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Prurigo pigmentosa: literature review. Beutler BD, Cohen PR, Lee RA. Am J Clin Dermatol. 2015;16:533–543. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources