Surgical treatment of cicatricial ectropion in lamellar ichthyosis

BACKGROUND. Lamellar ichthyosis is a skin disorder that is frequently associated with cicatricial ectropion and lagophthalmos. The authors present the surgical management of cicatricial ectropion in a case with lamellar ichthyosis. PATIENT AND METHODS. A 2-year-old male presented with bilateral cicatricial ectropion of the upper and lower eyelids. He had lagophthalmos and corneal punctuate staining. His skin was totally involved with the disease process except his prepuce. The patient was circumcised, and after the correction of horizontal eyelid laxity, the penile skin graft was sutured into the defects in all four eyelids. RESULTS. 18 months following surgery the patient had no lagophthalmos or corneal exposure, but had slight ectropion at the temporal side of the left lower eyelid. He had no complications from the circumcision. CONCLUSION. Prepuce is an alternative donor tissue in male patients with no other available donor site. To our knowledge, this is the second report of cicatricial ectropion corrected with a penile skin graft.