“KIN

LESIONS

touched the nape of ‘he ae ko
Neck lesions are
illustrated in Plate i 4
Vathars desions ¢ Plate

11) usually consisted foccalessing papules
Antecubital fossa lessons were iaracterized "ys
formation

of

thickener,

daques.

NiO RR OLA TOS

(fF cogsnertation changes were mild. Foot
rons mid bot repigmented at sites of deepest

haivetnent and some atrophy of the skin in

Hes

ful due to excoriation of tee cpigernus

“These

healed rapidly
Deeper lesions were see oi the scalp. neck,
Touey were char

acterized by transep dermal vecrosis with wet
desquamation leaving weeriny, rusting ulcera

tious. Vesiculation was ot observed except
with foot lesions which developed bullae. fre
quently several centimeters in dinmeter. beneath

thickened

pigmented

olaques

‘These

foot

lesions occurred on tie dorsum of the feet and

between the toes. niv cne case showed des
quamation on the soles «f he feet.
After

several days the bul:ae ruptiree and desqua
mated leaving raw uleers
Some of these

lesions, particularly « f the feet. became second
arily infected requiring untibsorics.

most of the lesions healed

capidly

However

and new

epithelium covered tae alerated areas within

a week to 10 days.

Foot lesions are tlustrated

in Plates 5-10) One ear lesion Plates [- 1)
took several months to Lea
The repigmentaticn of cone ceeper esions

presented abnormalsies

‘

feep, were pain

feet,and in one caseoiythertir

Nees lesions often

developed a dusky, grayish orewn pigmentation
associated with a thi kene:
rinige peel” ap
pearance.
Histolog en: ippearance oof ep
dermal rugosity was ilso roted 2 these lestons
(see section on histopatho ogy
In addition,
At examuna

tion 6 months and 1 year efter tue exposure, the

skin appeared norma wh ne res:dual changes
in the vast majority 07 nse:
‘Towever some of
the deeper lesions con inuec to shawevidence if
residual damage. Foreme-t mong these was
the ear lesion which md healed with consider
able scarring, atrophy. sal ng of the epiuermis
and vross telangiecta ss,
soot onths the |.
perpigmentation and thickens ig f the skin of
the neck lesions had rreat|
ds fecoonce by

Microscopic Appearance

Hiopsies were taken of seven neck, and one
axt dary desion m the Rongelap group during
Ihe turd to fourth week after exposure. At
the tine of biopsy these lesions were in the hyperpigmented stage with little or no desquama-

noi

Most cf the biopsies were taken from in-

ais duals with lesions of average severity. A
second sertes of biopsies (repeats in three inwiv.duats were taken from this group, + at

the seventh week and 5 at the eighth week post-

exposure.

These were taken from the neck and

antecubital fossae.

All of these lesions had

desquamated and the depigmented skin had repigmented te a dusky, vray color with some
tuickeniny of the skin «“orange-peel” appearNHtltie yp,

plates U5 and 27.

Biopsies were not

taken from .leerative lesions or from the feet

becuase of tue danger of infection. A third
ser es of 1) biopsies were taken from the Rongelip sronp ait 6 months along with several con-

Tro tiopsies "rom unexposed natives. Material
wa obtamed in many cases adjacent to sites of
Preyvicds biopsies

roa
.
ithi
dotioosy
wounds: healed rapidly
within
a‘
ee ls cays sith no secondary complica-

Ttibs

[he macroscopic findings are summarized as
f iJ

the deeper lesions of the “er fa lea to rene
ment, remaining pina or cette

Geers vars parent,

Severn

babies and one woman dessicpec lesious im the

anal region which, though no

31

iW

tars septes~ urd to qth week.

iEpidermis.

Devnsep dermal damage was noted with a few
Htervening
arendes showing less damage
Paresh and Ze
The epidermis in the most
extensivels a volved areas showed considerable
ivrepdy with flattening of the rete pegs and in
tlaces che epidermis was reduced to a thickness
footy cedis ¢Phates 2b. 23, and 24). The cells
of he malpighian laver showed pleomorphic

Woe

»

oyknosis and evtoplusmic halos, giant

tera

og "ew nstances multinucleated cells.

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