Achenbach's syndrome: Case report and systematic review of the literature

Introduction Achenbach's syndrome is a vascular disorder of the hands and feet. It is of unknown aetiology and has a benign course. Because of its low prevalence, available literature is limited, and most publications are case reports. No Latin-American publications were found on the subject. The case of a 58 year-old man is presented, along with a systematic review of the literature to describe its clinical characteristics. Methods A literature search was conducted in PubMed, Embase and Lilacs using free terms and controlled vocabulary (MeSH, Emtree, and DeCS). Results An analysis was made on a total of 23 articles, 19 of which were case reports, with a total of 46 patients, 43 women and 3 men, from 7 countries. The disorder occurs most often in women over 50 years, and is manifested by the sudden appearance of a blue coloration of the palmar surface of the fingers. It is less common in the feet. Conclusions Achenbach's syndrome is benign, and does not require medical intervention. Diagnostic methods are of little use. Therefore, identification is important to avoid unnecessary procedures.