PYOSIS TROPICA 



202 1 



of the Temperate Zones, has very Httle or no effect in pyosis man- 

 soni. After the eruption has disappeared, it is advisable to use 

 some Condy's fluid or other disinfectant in the bath to prevent 

 relapses; and, if the skin is not too tender, a formalin soap may be 

 regularly used. The underclothing should be regularly dusted with 

 one of the above powders. 



Pyosis Tropica. 



Synonym. — ^Pyosis Castellanii, Kurunegala ulcers, Pyosis Caffra. 



Definition. — Pyosis tropica is characterized by the presence of 

 numerous crusty lesions on the legs and arms, caused by pyococci. 



Historical. — Under the name 

 ' pyosis tropica ' Castellani de- 

 scribed in 1909 a skin disease very 

 common in Ceylon and Southern 

 India. In Ceylon it is called by the 

 natives Kurunegala sore, as it is 

 especially common in that district. 

 Pyosis tropica has been reported 

 from other tropical countries. It 

 has been observed, in 1912, in 

 Tripoli by Gabbi and Sabella; in 

 the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan by 

 Chalmers and O'Farrell, in 1913; in 

 South Africa by Ricono, in 1916; 

 and by Pijcer in 1918. 



.etiology. — The disease is prob 

 ably due to the usual pyogenic 

 cocci, and is allied to the ordinary 

 impetiginous and ecthymatous 

 conditions, though much more 

 severe. Chalmers and O'Farrell 

 grew an organism from their case 

 which, differing somewhat from 

 the other species of aurococcus, 

 was called by them Aurococcus 

 tropicus. It was held to be causal 

 because a vaccine made from it 

 rapidly cured the case, but had no 

 effect on a case of Nile boils; but 

 in other cases other varieties of 

 pyogenic cocci may be causal. 



Symptomatology. — ^The patient, generally a young boy or girl, 

 though adults may also suffer from it, presents on the legs, arms, and 

 occasionally all over the body, except the face, numerous crusty 

 lesions, occasionally rupia-like, of a dirty blackish or yellowish 

 colour. If the thick crust is removed, a shallow ulcer with an 

 irregular margin and granulating fundus will be seen, or a small, 

 flattened, or hemispheric nodule the size of a pea, with a pinkish, 



Fig. 795, — Pyosis Tropica. 



The white patches are in reality 

 thick yellow crusts. 



