Dermatological and immunological conditions due to nerve lesions.

Some syndromes are of interest to both neurologists and dermatologists, because cutaneous involvement may harbinger symptoms of a neurological disease. The aim of this review is to clarify this aspect. The skin, because of its relationships with the peripheral sensory nervous system, autonomic nervous system and central nervous system, constitutes a neuroimmunoendocrine organ. The skin contains numerous neuropeptides released from sensory nerves. Neuropeptides play a precise role in cutaneous physiology and pathophysiology, and in certain skin diseases. A complex dysregulation of neuropeptides is a feature of some diseases of both dermatological and neurological interest (e.g. cutaneous and nerve lesions following herpes zoster infection, cutaneous manifestations of carpal tunnel syndrome, trigeminal trophic syndrome). Dermatologists need to know when a patient should be referred to a neurologist and should consider this option in those presenting with syndromes of unclear etiology.