Juvenile xanthogranuloma with lichenoid appearance

Juvenile xanthogranulomas are benign histiocytic cell tumors that develop mainly in infancy and early childhood and then spontaneously regress. We report a 2‐year‐old boy who presented with generalized eruption of a mixture of micronodular and macronodular juvenile xanthogranuloma with a large number of widely distributed lichenoid papules. Light microscopic and immunocytochemical analyses of the lesion were consistent with juvenile xanthogranuloma. Abdominal ultrasonography did not detect any visceral lesions, and brain magnetic resonance imaging did not detect any mass lesions. We decided to observe the course without treatment in this case because there are no internal masses of juvenile xanthogranuloma. Regular follow up has therefore been scheduled. To our knowledge, this is the third report of a case demonstrating juvenile xanthogranuloma with lichenoid appearance. Future analyses of various cytokines such as granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor and/or tumor necrosis factor‐α in juvenile xanthogranuloma lesions should be of great help in elucidating the pathogenesis of this disease.