Adenoma Sebaceum

ADENOMA SEBACEUM, a rare dermatosis observed clinically in two forms: 1) asymmetrical and 2) symmetrical. The first form—true adenoma sebaceum—usually presents as multiple tumors ranging in size from a lentil to a walnut and larger, scattered over the head, face, back, and genitalia. The second form occurs in three clinical types: a) the orange-red type of adenoma sebaceum (Pringle)—soft, yellowish-red nodules ranging from the size of a millet seed to a pea, symmetrically located on the face, especially around the nasolabial folds, and on the chin; histologically, it shows hyperplasia of the sebaceous glands, new vessel formation, and connective tissue proliferation; b) the normal skin-colored type (Balzer)—roundish-flattened nodules, dense, up to the size of a lentil, non-confluent, strictly symmetrical, with the same localization; histologically, it shows a large-meshed network of epithelial cords and nests with cysts filled with horny masses and fat; c) the pink type (Hallopeau and Leredde); extremely dense, often polygonal, ranging from the size of a pinhead to a pea, isolated, crowded, and confluent nodules and nodes with the same localization; histologically, there is a predominance of fibrous tissue.

Adenoma sebaceum is frequently encountered in mentally retarded individuals, arising in childhood, multiplying around the time of puberty, and sometimes undergoing regression with age. The etiology and pathogenesis have not been elucidated. The hypothesis of "hamartomas," i.e., congenital benign tumors of "organoid structure," predominates. For the treatment of adenoma sebaceum, electrolysis, ignipuncture, and carbon dioxide snow are employed.