Table 1.
Four Types of Kaposi's Sarcoma
| Type of KS | Characteristics |
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Geographic | Population | Clinical Presentation | |
| Classic or Sporadic | Mediterranean, Eastern European | Elderly men | Indolent, cutaneous lesions |
| Endemic or African | Equatorial Africa | Predominantly men (immunocompetent) | Often lymphatic involvement of the feet and legs with lymphoedema and nodular cutaneous plaques |
| Transplant or Iatrogenic | More frequent in developed world setting | Immunosuppressive therapy, organ transplant | Aggressive; often involving mucosa, gingival hyperplasia, or visceral organs; sometimes without cutaneous manifestation |
| Epidemic or AIDS- associated | Worldwide | HIV-infected | Various, more aggressive course, IRIS |
Abbreviations: AIDS, acquired immune deficiency syndrome; HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; IRIS, immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome; KS, Kaposi's sarcoma.