Dermanyssus gallinae is a mite that normally parasitizes small birds but may occasionally bite humans. We report an unusual case of an 82-year-old woman who presented with pruritus and bite-like lesions over her trunk. Other members of the household were also affected. On physical examination, mites < 1 mm in size were found on the patient's body. The family were residing in the city centre and had no pets, but there were pigeon nests in close proximity to the house. Most dermatologists have difficulties identifying ectoparasitosis. In the case of D. gallinae, the small size of the mites and the fact that they leave the host after feeding means that they may not be seen at presentation, thus such infestations are likely to be underdiagnosed. Physicians should be aware that infection with this mite is possible even in patients from urban areas, and it should be included in the differential diagnosis of conditions causing recurrent pruritus unresponsive to standard treatments.

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Cutaneous mastocytoma (CM) is a localized variant of mastocytosis, characterized by an over-accumulation of mast cells in the skin, without extra-cutaneous organ involvement. It is defined as the presence of up to 3 isolated mast-cell skin lesions and commonly develops in newborns and children. We report the case of a 35-year-old healthy Caucasian woman presenting with a 4-year history of a pruritic brown plaque on her left breast. Hematoxylin-eosin staining showed a dense dermal infiltrate of atypical mast cells extending to the subcutis. The cells presented a marked nuclear pleomorphism with bilobed and multilobed nuclei. Immunohistochemical studies revealed strongly expressed KIT (CD117) and CD25 proteins. Serum tryptase levels and bone marrow biopsy were normal. The diagnosis was a solitary cutaneous pleomorphic mastocytoma. This case can be added to 17 other cases of adult mastocytoma documented in the literature, although, unlike other reported cases, and as far as we are aware, this is the first case of pleomorphic mastocytoma in an adult.