Persistent facial ulcerations with a unique clinical appearance: possible trigeminal trophic syndrome

We reported a 53-year-old woman with a persistent facial ulcer which moved gradually from the right marginal portion of the nasal root to the right lateral canthus along the margin of the right lower eyelid. The ulcer healed spontaneously. A similar ulcer developed at the entrance of the right anterior naris. The clinical findings were suggestive of squamous cell carcinoma, deep mycosis, mycobacterial infection, or a related condition. However, no definitive diagnosis could be made from the clinicopathological findings or the laboratory examinations, including bacterial, mycobacterial, and fungal cultures. The characteristic location of the lesion, and course of the disease, however, suggested the diagnosis of trigeminal trophic syndrome.