Acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis (Sweet's syndrome). Successful treatment with short term corticosteroids.

Acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis is a disease of unknown etiology characterized by fever, tender skin lesions, and arthritis. Histopathologic examination shows a perivasculitis of the skin with lack of inflammation of vessels. It occurs in a female: male ratio of 4:1 with middle age females affected most frequently. We report a 17-year-old male with acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis in whom the relationship between the arthritis, skin eruptions, white blood cell count and erythrocyte sedimentation rate are presented. The young man was treated with prednisone for only 5 days with complete resolution of the signs and symptoms and without relapse for 11 months.