Papule
{{short description|Small, circumscribed, solid elevation of skin with no visible fluid}}
{{Hatnote|Contrast with "macule" and other lesions at Skin condition § Primary lesions.}}
{{Infobox medical condition (new)
| name = Pastule
| synonyms =
| image = Fibrous papule of the nose 01.jpg
| caption = Fibrous papule of the nose
| pronounce = {{IPAc-en|ˈ|p|æ|p|juː|l|}}{{cite web|url=http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/papule|title=Papule definition and meaning - Collins English Dictionary}}
| field = Dermatology
| symptoms = Small, well-defined bump in skin
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A papule is a small, well-defined bump in the skin.{{cite book |last1=James |first1=William D. |last2=Elston |first2=Dirk |last3=Treat |first3=James R. |last4=Rosenbach |first4=Misha A. |last5=Neuhaus |first5=Isaac |title=Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology |date=2020 |publisher=Elsevier |isbn=978-0-323-54753-6 |page=11|edition=13th |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UEaEDwAAQBAJ&dq=papule&pg=PA11 |language=en |chapter=2. Cutaneous signs and diagnosis}} It may have a rounded, pointed or flat top, and may have a dip. It can appear with a stalk, be thread-like or look warty. It can be soft or firm and its surface may be rough or smooth. Some have crusts or scales. A papule can be flesh colored, yellow, white, brown, red, blue or purplish.{{cite book |last1=Dinulos |first1=James G. H. |title=Habif's Clinical Dermatology |date=2019 |publisher=Elsevier |isbn=978-0-323-61269-2 |page=4 |edition=7th |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TvjCDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA4 |language=en |chapter=1. Principles of diagnosis and anatomy}} There may be just one or many, and they may occur irregularly in different parts of the body or appear in clusters. It does not contain fluid but may progress to a pustule or vesicle. A papule is smaller than a nodule; it can be as tiny as a pinhead and is typically less than 1 cm in width, according to some sources,{{cite web |last1=Oakley |first1=Amanda |title=Terminology in dermatology |url=https://dermnetnz.org/topics/terminology/ |website=dermnetnz.org |access-date=20 September 2021 |language=en}} and 0.5 cm according to others. When merged together, it appears as a plaque.
A papule's colour might indicate its cause, such as white in milia, red in eczema, yellowish in xanthoma and black in melanoma. They may open when scratched and become infected and crusty.{{DorlandsDict|six/000078021|papule}}
Definition
Evaluation
A papule may have a rounded, pointed or flat top, and may have a dip. It can be polygonal but is never rectangular or square.{{Cite book|last=Allen|first=Herbert B.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e-9Wifq-R4gC&q=Dermatology+Terminology|title=Dermatology Terminology|date=2010|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-1-84882-839-1|location=Philadelphia|pages=1–13|language=en|chapter=1. Papulosquamous diseases}} It can appear with a stalk, be thread-like or look warty. Ulceration, oozing, bleeding or thin blood vessels may be present in a papule. It can be soft or firm and its surface may be rough or smooth. Some have crusts or scales. A papule can be flesh colored, yellow, white, brown, black, blue or purplish, or varying shades of red. The intensity of redness might indicate how long the papule has been present. There may be just one or many, and they may occur irregularly in different parts of the body or appear in clusters. It may progress to a pustule or vesicle.
Differential diagnosis
Angiofibromas are papules, types of which include the usually solitary fibrous papule of the nose and periungual angiofibroma, and multiple in pearly penile papules, and the facial angiofibromas as may be seen in tuberous sclerosis.{{cite book |last1=Paller |first1=Amy S. |last2=Mancini |first2=Anthony J. |title=Clinical Pediatric Dermatology: A Textbook of Skin Disorders of Childhood and Adolescence |date=2020 |publisher=Elsevier |location=St Louis, Missouri |isbn=978-0-323-54988-2 |page=251 |edition=6th |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H3UrEAAAQBAJ&dq=electrosurgery+pearly+penile&pg=PA251 |language=en |chapter=9. Cutaneous tumors and tumor syndromes}}
Papules with scale on the palms and soles may occur in secondary syphilis, psoriasis, eczema, tinea manuum, mycosis fungoides. In lichen planus papules may be itchy, flat-topped, polygonal, purplish with white streaks, and can be solitary, or occur in clusters or in a line.
See also
References
{{reflist}}
{{Clinical and histological nomenclature for skin lesions}}