Acne Fulminans

Acne fulminans, also known as acne maligna, is a rare skin disorder characterized by an acute, painful, ulcerative, and hemorrhagic clinical form of acne. This condition may or may not be associated with systemic symptoms, such as fever and polyarthritis. In some cases, the condition can also lead to bone lesions and laboratory abnormalities. Acne fulminans is often confused with acne conglobata. This condition is typically resistant to the usual acne antibiotics. The term  was introduced by Plewig and Kligman in 1975, highlighting its abrupt onset and severity. Traditionally, acne fulminans has been categorized into two types based on systemic involvement—acne fulminans and acne fulminans sine fulminans, the latter indicating the absence of systemic involvement. Recently, 4 clinical variations have been identified— acne fulminans with systemic symptoms, acne fulminans without systemic symptoms, isotretinoin-induced acne fulminans with systemic symptoms, and isotretinoin-induced acne fulminans without systemic symptoms.