Conservative Treatment with Silicone Gel Sheet of Aplasia Cutis Congenita: Case Reports.

Lee, Ji Yoen; Yoo, Gyeol; Chung, Sang Hun; Wee, Sung Shin

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Case Report

Journal of the Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons 2003;30(4):501-504.
Published online July 1, 2003.

Conservative Treatment with Silicone Gel Sheet of Aplasia Cutis Congenita: Case Reports.

Ji Yoen Lee, Gyeol Yoo, Sang Hun Chung, Sung Shin Wee

Department of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery, College of Medicine, Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea. psyg@catholic.ac.kr

Abstract

Aplasia cutis congenita represents a congenital absence of all skin layers, and it may occasionally extend through the bone and dura of the skull. Since the first report by Cordon in 1767, over 500 cases have been reported. Eighty percents of all cases are found in the scalp, and 20 percents of these cases involve extremities and trunk and are often bilaterally symmetrical. Histologic examination demonstrates a layer of thin dermal collagen without overlying epithelium or adnexal structures. It has several clinical groups classified by the location and pattern of the skin defect, associated anomalies and the mode of inheritance. Its management is controversial and may be conservative treatment or the surgical option to provide definite skin cover. In 1990, Wexler suggested that conservative treatment using Silvadene was the preferred option. We would like to present 2 cases in which silicone gel sheet as a conservative treatment modality led to favorable outcomes. It was invented for the treatment of hypertrophic scar but has been used and studied for the open wounds in recent years. The use of silicone gel sheet on congenital skin defect has many advantages: the danger of infection is minimized due to frequent washing; prolonged hospitalization is prevented; pain or bleeding is minimized for dressing changes because it doesn't adhere to the wound; and it can be used after the epithelization for the prevention of hypertrophic scar.

Keywords: Aplasia cutis congenita; Silicone gel sheet

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