Pastia's sign, Pastia lines, or Thompson's sign is a

clinical sign Signs and symptoms are the observed or detectable signs, and experienced symptoms of an illness, injury, or condition. A sign for example may be a higher or lower temperature than normal, raised or lowered blood pressure or an abnormality showin ...

in which pink or red lines formed of confluent

petechiae A petechia () is a small red or purple spot (≤4 mm in diameter) that can appear on the skin, conjunctiva, retina, and mucous membranes which is caused by haemorrhage of capillaries. The word is derived from Italian , 'freckle,' of obscure origin ...

are found in skin creases, particularly the crease in the antecubital fossa, the soft depression on the inside of the arm; the folding crease divides this fossa where the forearm meets the (upper) arm (the

biceps The biceps or biceps brachii ( la, musculus biceps brachii, "two-headed muscle of the arm") is a large muscle that lies on the front of the upper arm between the shoulder and the elbow. Both heads of the muscle arise on the scapula and join ...

, triceps,

humerus The humerus (; ) is a long bone in the arm that runs from the shoulder to the elbow. It connects the scapula and the two bones of the lower arm, the radius and ulna, and consists of three sections. The humeral upper extremity consists of a roun ...

section of the upper extremity); the inside of the elbow (the inside flexor depression (fossa) of the elbow. It occurs in patients with

scarlet fever Scarlet fever, also known as Scarlatina, is an infectious disease caused by ''Streptococcus pyogenes'' a Group A streptococcus (GAS). The infection is a type of Group A streptococcal infection (Group A strep). It most commonly affects childr ...

prior to the appearance of the rash and persists as pigmented lines after desquamation. The sign is named after the Romanian physician Constantin Chessec Pastia (1883–1926).

References

Medical signs {{med-sign-stub