LAUSR

BD: Bowen’s disease HPV: human papillomavirus INTRODUCTION Bowen’s disease (BD), also known as squamous cell carcinoma in situ, is a keratinocytic neoplasm that is limited to the epidermis. This entity usually develops in elderly people, although 4 cases in healthy pediatric patients have been described. Kim et al reported a 4-year-old girl, the youngest patient documented, with a hyperpigmented periungual plaque on the right thumb that showed slow growth over 3 years without any other symptom. The plaque was removed surgically and the histologic analysis was compatible with BD; in situ hybridization analysis was negative for human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA subtypes 6, 11, 16, 18, 21, 33, and 51. Firooz et al described a 20-year-old woman who presented with a lesion that closely mimicked malignant melanoma that was finally diagnosed as BD, with negative results for antibodies against HPV in the histologic analysis. Hyun et al reported case of a healthy 12-year-old boy with a periungual hyperpigmented plaque on the right index finger that was compatible with BD; in this case, in situ hybridization result for HPV was positive for subtype 34. He was treated with photodynamic therapy and had an uneventful recovery. Finally, Hudson et al described the case of an 11-year-old girl with a periungual hyperpigmented plaque located on the third finger of her left hand that was also positive for HPV (high-risk subtypes 16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, and 68) in the in situ hybridization analysis. Acral BD lesions tend to show hyperkeratosis and pigmentation. Despite the fact