A man in his early 50s from Tanzania presented with chronic nodular skin lesions and joint pain, likely due to gout complicated by obesity, after over 15 years of misdiagnosis and ineffective treatment. Despite various therapies for leprosy, tuberculosis and steroid use, his condition worsened, leading to hyperglycaemia and significant financial strain. Missed opportunities to use simple, low-cost diagnostic tests such as ultrasound and examining nodule fluid for urate crystals led to delays in diagnosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTuberculosis in endemic areas is likely to be overdiagnosed in patients with atypical clinical and imaging findings mimicking tuberculosis, as in our case of angiosarcoma. Detailed history, physical examination, imaging, and histopathology avert diagnosis of tumors as tuberculosis in resource-limited settings, where countless diseases have common clinical and imaging presentations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Skin cancer is rare among Africans and albinism is an established risk for skin cancer in this population. Ultraviolet radiation is highest at the equator and African albinos living close to the equator have the highest risk of developing skin cancers.
Methods: This was a retrospective study that involved histological review of all specimens with skin cancers from African albinos submitted to The Regional Dermatology Training Center in Moshi, Tanzania from 2002 to 2011.
Background: Vitiligo is an acquired, predominantly asymptomatic, depigmenting disorder with profound psychological effects.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at the Regional Dermatology Training Center in Moshi, Tanzania. All 88 patients with vitiligo older than 15 years of age who attended the skin clinic from October 2009 to April 2010 were recruited.