FIBROELASTOLYTIC PAPULOSIS OF THE NECK - A REPORT OF 20 CASES

The clinical and histological features of the entities known as 'white fibrous papulosis of the neck' (WFPN) and 'acquired elastolysis of th e papillary dermis simulating pseudoxanthoma elasticum' (PDE) are not clearly defined. This study was conducted to compare our experience of WFPN/PDE with those described in the literature. Twenty patients pres ented at our institution with papular eruptions involving the neck. Th e asymptomatic lesions, which ranged in colour from normal skin tones to yellowish, were isolated or coalescent. Microscopically, the papule s showed elastolysis and fibrosis of the upper reticular and papillary dermis, A review of the literature shows similar characteristics in c ases reported as WFPN and PDE. This study indicates that WFPN and PDE are variants of a single disorder that can be more precisely defined a s 'fibroelastolytic papulosis of the neck' and which appears to be a m anifestation of intrinsic skin ageing.