Pediatric panniculitis

What is pediatric panniculitis?

Panniculitis is a condition that causes painful bumps (nodules) to form just underneath the skin. These bumps lead to inflammation (swelling) in the fat layer under the skin, which is known as the panniculus. The panniculus is the type of fat that provides insulation for the body and helps control body temperature.

What are the different types of pediatric panniculitis?

• Cold panniculitis - Cold panniculitis affects areas of the body that have been exposed to extreme cold.

• Erythema nodosum - Erythema nodosum causes painful, red bumps on the front of the lower legs.

• Lipodermatosclerosis - Lipodermatosclerosis causes vein problems and obesity.

• Subcutaneous sarcoidosis - Subcutaneous sarcoidosis, caused by sarcoidosis, is a condition that causes inflammatory cells to form unnaturally in various organs throughout the body.

What are the signs and symptoms of pediatric panniculitis?

• Bulging of one or both eyes

• Fatigue (extreme tiredness)

• Fever

• Nausea and vomiting

• Necrosis (tissue breakdown) around the areas of the bumps

• Oily substance that drains from the bumps

• Pain in the abdomen

• Pain in the joints and muscles

• Painful bumps that are often red in color and most commonly appear on the legs, feet, face, arms, chest, abdomen and buttocks

• Unintentional weight loss

What are the causes of pediatric panniculitis?

There are many potential causes of panniculitis, including:

• Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency

• Bacterial infection, such as tuberculosis or streptococcus 

• Crohn’s disease 

• Diabetes 

• Fungal infection

• Injury due to intense exercise, exposure to extremely cold temperatures or injections of medicine into the fat layer just underneath the skin

• Leukemia (cancer that affects the blood cells)

• Lupus (immune disorder that causes ongoing inflammation throughout the body)

• Lymphoma (cancer that affects the lymph nodes and vessels that carry lymph fluid throughout the body)

• Pancreatic diseases

• Parasitic infection

• Rheumatoid arthritis 

• Sarcoidosis (condition that causes inflammatory cells to form unnaturally in various organs throughout the body)

• Scleroderma (immune system disorder that affects the skin)

• Ulcerative colitis (UC) 

• Viral infection

Risk factors

• A child is at a higher risk for developing panniculitis if they have an infection, an inflammatory disease or a connective tissue disorder.

• This condition more often affects females than it does males.