Granuloma Annulare

[John S]

Does anyone else have this symptom? I have sores that started appearing on my hands early last Winter. At first I thought they were warts and I visited two Dermatologists. The first biopsy didn't have a result. The second biopsy said that they were consistent with Granuloma Annulare. I have about 7 of the sores in a circle arrangement on the palm of my left hand. There are several visible and invisible (subcutaneous) sores on my left thumb and fingers. These are all on the touch surfaces of my left hand. They hurt a great deal when I touch something such as picking up a 12 pack of soda or trying to play a musical instrument. I am a hunt and peck typist with the tips of my index fingers so this does not hurt.

On my right hand I have one that comes and goes on the tip on my thumb. My right index finger has a huge one that starts on the side and goes to the top of the finger. While it is quite large, it only hurts if I press o the side of the finger.

If you have had these, do they go away with Wegener's treatment?

[Alias]

Interesting. I have subcutaneous, wart like bumps that surface from time to time on the palmar surface of my thumbs. Their appearance seems to coincide with feeling generally unwell. The bumps themselves are not painful, not visible, but definitely palpable. Sometimes there are three or four extending from the base of of the thumb in a line up through the middle joint. Anatomically this would seem to follow the route of a tendon sheath... but again there's no pain and they don't seem to be brought on by any particular activity. They will surface for days or weeks and then disappear. I haven't consulted a doctor about it, but I've been assuming it has something to do with GPA or with being immune suppressed. In my case, it's not painful, so I'm willing to live with the mystery for now. Obviously quite different from what you are describing. Hope someone figures that out and gets you some effective treatment.

[John S]

I saw Dr. Villa-Forte today. She glanced at my hands for less than 5 seconds and said "those are Granuloma Annulare". I was surprised that she knew what they ere. I have had three dermatologists look at my hand and none of them had a clue. It was a biopsy that called out the disease.
Dr. Villa-Forte said that these are not related to Wegener's. I'll take her word for that but I still think that these are skin manifestations of an autoimmune disease. I don't think that is a separate disease operating at the same time.