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Self-induced Nasal Ulceration

2004, Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery

Background: Nasal ulcerations have many causes. Ulcerations that are self-induced are difficult to diagnose and treat. Two rare conditions with self-induced nasal ulceration are trigeminal trophic syndrome (TTS) and factitious disorder (FD). Trigeminal trophic syndrome is characterized by trigeminal anesthesia, nasal alar ulceration, and facial paresthesia. Appearance of the nasal ulcer after trigeminal ablation for neuralgia is diagnostic. Self-induced nasal lesions that occur in FD are primarily distinguished from those in TTS by the presence of normal trigeminal nerve function and frequent patient denial of lesion manipulation. Objectives: To increase physician awareness of the disorders leading to self-induced nasal ulceration and to discuss management issues in our patient series. Design: A retrospective review of 7 cases in which the patients presented for reconstructive consultation between March 1985 and October 1997 and were found to have self-induced nasal ulcerations. Setting: Tertiary university medical center. Results: Five patients were identified with TTS and underwent nasal reconstruction an average of 43 months