Erythema migrans: a reassessment of diagnostic criteria for early cutaneous manifestations of borreliosis with particular emphasis on clonality investigations.

BACKGROUND: Controversy exists about the relationship of borrelia infection with B-cell lymphomas because B-cell clonality has been identified in infiltrates that contained borrelia-specific DNA. Systematic clinicopathological, immunophenotypical and molecular pathological studies of early borreliosis are lacking.
OBJECTIVES: (i) To clarify whether clonal B-cell populations are present already in early borreliosis of the skin (erythema migrans); (ii) to re-evaluate clinicopathological, immunophenotypical and molecular pathological criteria for diagnosis of erythema migrans.
METHODS: Study of 34 patients with erythema migrans confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Infiltrates were analysed by histopathological and immunohistochemical methods and multiplex PCR for clonal IgH rearrangements.
RESULTS: Erythema migrans shows a broad spectrum of changes including sparse infiltrates of T lymphocytes, dense interstitial granulomatous infiltrates (CD68+), and pseudolymphomatous patterns with germinal centre formation. There were accompanying epidermal changes in 59% of patients, and plasma cells were an inconsistent finding. B cells were few when infiltrates were sparse, but increased disproportionately when infiltrates were dense. IgH rearrangement studies revealed one pseudo-oligoclonal, three pseudoclonal and three clonal infiltrates. Pseudoclonality was encountered when infiltrates contained only few B lymphocytes.
CONCLUSIONS: Infiltrates in erythema migrans are dominated by T cells followed by CD68+ histiocytes and B lymphocytes. Plasma cells are an inconsistent finding. Pseudoclonality of IgH rearrangement is a result of infiltrates being sparse in B lymphocytes and represents a pitfall in molecular pathological diagnosis that can only be avoided by duplicate or triplicate tests. Incidental B-cell clonality may be encountered in patients with unequivocal erythema migrans and should not be interpreted as a malignant lymphomatous process induced by borrelia.