Pigmenting Purpuric Dermatoses: Striking But Not a Manifestation of COVID-19 Infection

Purpuric or erythematous eruptions of the lower extremities can be perplexing, especially because this clinical sign has been associated with COVID-19 infection. Since the start of the pandemic, COVID-19 often has been the first differential diagnosis for many clinical findings; however, pigmented purpuric dermatoses (PPDs) are distinctive, reassuring, eponymous, and not linked to this virus. In this article, we differentiate the PPDs and delineate them from potentially serious differential diagnoses, including inflammatory retiform purpura, leukocytoclastic vasculitis, stasis dermatitis, and cellulitis.