Atrophie blanche. Report of two patients treated with aspirin and dipyridamole.

Atrophie blanche was originally attributed to syphilis or tuberculosis, but recent investigators have generally implicated a localized cutaneous vasculitis. In an attempt to inhibit the occlusive vascular changes believed responsible for the cutaneous lesions, drugs such as phenformin and ethylestrenol, which increased the blood fibrinolytic activity, were used with favorable results. When phenformin was taken off the market, the use of drugs that act by preventing platelet aggregation was suggested by encouraging results in the management of other occlusive vascular disorders such as coronary artery disease and stroke. Excellent results are reported in two cases of atrophie blanche treated with two anti-platelet-aggregating medications, aspirin and dipyridamole (Persantine). It is imperative that low doses of aspirin be used, since high doses have the effect of increasing the thrombotic tendency by preventing prostacyclin formation.