Acropustulosis of Infancy
Larissa V. Furtado, MD
Key Facts
Terminology
Infantile acropustulosis
Clinical Issues
Predominantly occurs during first 3 years of life
Not limited to young children
Involves primarily acral skin
Small, pruritic erythematous papules
Papules soon evolve to pruritic vesicopustules
Healed lesions may show hyperpigmentation and scales
Recurrent breakouts of decreasing frequency and severity may persist for 2-3 years
Microscopic Pathology
Subcorneal pustules containing eosinophils (early) &/or neutrophils (late)
Ancillary Tests
Negative for deposits of antibody and complement
 Small vesicles and erythematous papules involve the acral skin of this infant with acropustulosis of infancy (AI). (Courtesy S. Vanderhooft, MD.) |
 Biopsy specimen of AI shows a subcorneal, intraepidermal pustule with a predominance of eosinophils  . (Courtesy M. Chaffins, MD.) |
TERMINOLOGY
Abbreviations
Acropustulosis of infancy (AI)
Synonyms
Infantile acropustulosis
ETIOLOGY/PATHOGENESIS
Etiology
Unknown
Scabies infestations may precede or be associated with AI
CLINICAL ISSUES
Epidemiology
Age
Predominantly occurs during first 3 years of life
Not limited to young children
Rare congenital cases have been reported
Gender
Although initial reports described male predominance, larger series have shown no gender predilection
Ethnicity
Larger series have shown no ethnic predilection
Site
Involves primarily acral skin
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