Impetigo Contagiosa

Abstract

IMPETIGO contagiosa is one of the most frequently encountered dermatologic conditions in children. It is a superficial infection of the skin, vesicular or pustular at the onset, which develops through exudative and crusted stages to complete healing without scar formation. Since the original description a century ago by Fox¹ there have been considerable discrepancies between the bacteriologic findings of various investigators as well as variation in prevalence, frequency, and predominant clinical type. The causative relationship between impetigo and acute glomerulonephritis^2-10 has created greater concern over the entity than that of merely a primary infection of the skin. As high as 68% of the cases of acute glomerulonephritis reported by Blumberg and Feldman¹⁰ had impetigo preceding the renal disease. To evalute impetigo contagiosa further, a prospective study was undertaken to identify the etiologic agents, observe precisely the clinical manifestations, evaluate the incidence of renal involvement, and compare the