eMedicine Specialties > Dermatology > Bacterial Infections

Malakoplakia: Follow-up

Author: Raphael J Kiel, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Wayne State University School of Medicine; Consulting Staff, Infectious Diseases Division, William Beaumont Hospital
Contributor Information and Disclosures

Updated: Oct 21, 2008

Follow-up

Further Inpatient Care

  • Generally, cutaneous malakoplakia is treated in an outpatient setting.

Further Outpatient Care

  • Patients should receive follow-up observation until the skin lesions resolve clinically.
  • Patients may require a prolonged course of antibiotic therapy.

Deterrence/Prevention

  • Patients should notify the physician if they develop a chronic skin lesion.
  • Immunosuppressive agents should be used with caution in patients with a prior history of malakoplakia.

Complications

  • Complications include local disfigurement and organ dysfunction with visceral involvement.

Prognosis

  • Malakoplakia usually has a benign clinical course.

Patient Education

  • Instruct patients who are immunosuppressed, who have undergone organ transplantation, or who are receiving systemic corticosteroids to notify the physician if they notice a fleshy mass that is growing slowly and ulcerating.

Miscellaneous

Medicolegal Pitfalls

  • Malakoplakia may be confused with cutaneous malignancy. Analysis of a biopsy specimen is often the only way to determine if malignancy exists.

Special Concerns

  • Malakoplakia may lead to an overestimation of the stage of an underlying gastrointestinal malignancy. Careful consideration and evaluation of biopsy material is required to exclude this condition and correctly stage the patient to direct therapy for the underlying cancer.
  • The Medscape Medical Malpractice and Legal Issues Resource Center may be helpful.
 
Acknowledgments

The authors and editors of eMedicine gratefully acknowledge the contributions of previous Chief Editor, William D. James, MD, to the development and writing of this article.



More on Malakoplakia

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Differential Diagnoses & Workup: Malakoplakia
Treatment & Medication: Malakoplakia
Follow-up: Malakoplakia
Multimedia: Malakoplakia
References
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Further Reading

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Keywords

malakoplakia, malacoplakia, soft plaque, genitourinary tract plaque, genitourinary tract nodule, GU tract nodule, GU tract plaque, cutaneous malakoplakia, cutaneous malacoplakia

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Contributor Information and Disclosures

Author

Raphael J Kiel, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Wayne State University School of Medicine; Consulting Staff, Infectious Diseases Division, William Beaumont Hospital
Raphael J Kiel, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine and American Geriatrics Society
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Medical Editor

Peter Fritsch, MD, Chair, Department of Dermatology and Venereology, University of Innsbruck, Austria
Peter Fritsch, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Dermatological Association, International Society of Pediatric Dermatology, and Society for Investigative Dermatology
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Pharmacy Editor

David F Butler, MD, Professor of Dermatology, Texas A&M University College of Medicine; Chair, Department of Dermatology, Director, Dermatology Residency Training Program, Scott and White Clinic
David F Butler, MD is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha, American Academy of Dermatology, American Medical Association, American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, American Society for MOHS Surgery, Association of Military Dermatologists, and Phi Beta Kappa
Disclosure: 3M Pharmaceutical Grant/research funds Other; Graceway Pharmaceuticals Grant/research funds Other

Managing Editor

Jeffrey J Miller, MD, Associate Professor, Department of Dermatology, Penn State University, Milton S Hershey Medical Center
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

CME Editor

Glen H Crawford, MD, Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine; Chief, Division of Dermatology, The Pennsylvania Hospital
Glen H Crawford, MD is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha, American Academy of Dermatology, American Medical Association, Phi Beta Kappa, and Society of USAF Flight Surgeons
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Chief Editor

Dirk M Elston, MD, Director, Department of Dermatology, Geisinger Medical Center
Dirk M Elston, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Dermatology
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

 
 
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