Dermatological problems in kidney recipients in Yazd Province, Iran

Background Kidney transplantation is one of the effective methods to treat kidney disease. In a kidney transplant, due to the use of many immunosuppressive drugs, the body is often subjected to various benign, premalignant and malignant dermatoses. The early diagnosis and effective treatment of such conditions can potentially reduce morbidity and mortality. Objective To determine the distribution of dermatoses in patients who have received kidney transplants. Patients and methods This cross-sectional study was performed on 120 kidney transplant recipients in Yazd University Hospitals in two years. The patients were examined by a dermatologist and diagnosis was made on the basis of clinical observations. Biopsies and scraping of the lesions were taken whenever necessary. Results 120 evaluable patients included 84 males and 36 females with mean age of 32 years. A total of 116 patients developed dermatological symptoms, which included: hypertrichosis (78.3%), photosensitivity (70%), cushingoid face (60%), gingival hyperplasia (43.3%), warts (40%), pityriasis versicolor (33.3%), steroidal acne (26.6%), herpes simplex (13.3%), herpes zoster (10%), nonmelanoma cancer (10%), oral candidiasis (6.6%), striae (6.6%), actinic keratosis (6.6%) and sebaceous hyperplasia (3.3%). Conclusion Skin lesions are a significant problem in kidney transplant recipients. A careful monitoring of these patients is recommended in order to detect these lesions in early stages and treat them.