Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome presenting with asymptomatic yellowish papules and leg length discrepancy: A case report.

Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome (BOS) is a rare, usually benign, autosomal dominant genetic disease affecting about 0.005% globally. BOS commonly manifests with asymptomatic connective tissue nevi, sometimes with sclerotic bone lesions like osteopoikilosis or melorheostosis. However, BOS may develop severe, symptomatic complications that require surgical intervention. Here we report a 9-year-8-month girl presenting with multiple nonpruritic, nonpainful skin plaques scattered around the trunk, buttocks, and bilateral legs. She had a history of right varus foot with inadequate plantar flexion. Upon visiting, obvious leg length discrepancy (LLD) was noted. Lesional biopsy revealed increased fibroblasts within dermal collagen bundles. Verhoeff-van Gieson stain revealed scattered foci of thickened elastic fibers between collagen fibers, especially in the mid-dermis. Radiographic examination of the lower extremities showed multiple small, round-to-oval shaped, radiopaque spots on the pelvic bones, femurs, tibiae, and both feet. Hyperostosis along the long axis with "dripping candle wax" appearance was characteristic of osteopoikilosis and melorheostosis. Genetic analysis showed heterozygous point mutation in exon 1 of LEMD3 gene (c.1323C>A, p.Y441X), confirming diagnosis of BOS. Sequential and epiphyseodesis were performed to correct LLD with a favorable outcome at 2-year follow-up. BOS associated with severe bone abnormalities is rare, but orthopedic surgical intervention can provide satisfactory outcome.

Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome with LEMD3 germline stopgain mutation p.R678* presenting as multiple subcutaneous nodules with mucin deposition.

Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome (BOS; OMIM 166700) is a rare autosomal dominant disorder characterized by the existence of connective tissue nevus and/or osteopoikilosis. The skin lesions usually present as firm, yellow, or flesh-colored papules and nodules, which may coalesce into plaques and increase in size and number over time. We present a case of a 26-year-old male with multiple subcutaneous nodules on the waist and thigh for more than 20 years. Being deeply seated, his skin lesions were not visible and could only be appreciated by palpation. Accordingly, pathology showed an increase in thick, crossed, or paralleled, elastic fibers arranged between the collagen bundles in the lower part of the reticular dermis and the subcutaneous fat with mucin deposition. Heterozygous point mutation in exon 8 of the LEMD3 gene was detected, which confirmed the diagnosis of BOS. The deeply situated nature of skin lesions noted in our case has not been reported in the literature of BOS. Our case thus expands the clinical and pathological features of the disease.

Depressed indurated plaque with elastorrhexis as a distinctive lesion in Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome.

Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome (BOS) is a rare autosomal dominant genodermatosis caused by heterozygous mutations in LEMD3 and characterized by connective tissue nevi and sclerotic bone lesions known as osteopoikilosis. We report a family with three individuals affected by BOS, two of whom manifested clinical and histopathological peculiarities, presenting with a depressed indurated plaque as the main cutaneous manifestation instead of the classic connective tissue nevi. Notable elastorrhexis was present in both biopsies.

Ossifying fibroma in Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome.

Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome represents an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by connective tissue nevi and osteopoikilosis. Cutaneous lesions may contain either predominantly elastic fibers or predominantly collagen fibers or may show both connective tissue components. The disease results from mutations in LEMD3 (MAN1), which lead to enhanced transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß) signaling and resultant changes in fibroblast function. TGF-ß alterations have been implicated in a number of fibrotic disorders, and it is therefore not surprising that a range of cutaneous and skeletal abnormalities have been associated with Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome. Herein, we report a novel association between ossifying fibroma and Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome and discuss how these conditions are likely to be mechanistically linked.

Connective tissue nevi: an entity revisited.

BACKGROUND: Connective tissue nevi (CTN) may be isolated, either sporadic or hereditary, or syndromic as in the Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome. Few publications have addressed the variable clinical and histopathologic expression of these benign hamartomas. OBJECTIVE: We sought to characterize the clinical and histopathologic features of CTN and to highlight a spectrum of clinical disease. METHODS: We carried out a retrospective study of cases selected after strict clinical and histopathologic confirmation of the diagnosis. RESULTS: A total of 33 patients with CTN were included. The average age of onset was 2 years. Three clinical forms were distinguished: type A with lesions at a single site, with one case presenting as an ulcerated infiltrated plaque; type B with two or more sites of involvement; and type C with unusually severe infiltration with functional impairment of a limb. Histopathologic examination of lesional biopsy specimens showed 10 collagenomas, one elastoma, 18 mixed CTN, and an increased number of fibroblasts in 4 cases. No correlation between clinical type and histopathologic findings was observed. LIMITATION: This was a descriptive case series. CONCLUSIONS: CTN comprise a clinical spectrum ranging from isolated papules to unusually severe aggressive plaques with monomelic involvement. The histopathologic features are heterogeneous and include a newly described variant, which we name "cellular CTN" because of the increased number of fibroblasts.

Connective tissue nevi in children: institutional experience and review.

BACKGROUND: Connective tissue nevi (CTN) are circumscribed hamartomas of the skin in which there is an abnormal mixture of normal components of the dermis that may be sporadic or associated with syndromes such as Buschke-Ollendorff, tuberous sclerosis, and Proteus. OBJECTIVE: We sought to specify the clinical and histologic features of CTN in childhood and to propose a diagnostic approach and updated classification. METHODS: This was a retrospective study in a tertiary pediatric outpatient population, accessing clinical and histopathological records. RESULTS: We classified 114 cases of CTN from 1980 to 2008. LIMITATIONS: The majority of cases were confirmed by histopathological examination. Therefore, our series excludes many CTN that were not biopsied. In addition, follow-up was variable. CONCLUSION: Our series demonstrates the usefulness of a modified classification for CTN. Biopsy should be done when clinical diagnosis is uncertain, or in multiple lesions. When biopsy is performed it should include normal-appearing skin for comparison and, in Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome, limited anterior-posterior x-rays of the hands, wrists, feet, ankles, knees, and pelvis instead of a full skeletal survey.

Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome and bilateral cutaneous syndactyly.

A 3-year-old boy presented with asymptomatic elastomas on the posterior trunk. Radiographic studies revealed osteopoikilosis, confirming the diagnosis of Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome. The patient had a history of bilateral simple cutaneous syndactyly, which has not been previously reported with this condition. Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome is a rare autosomal-dominant disorder characterized by connective tissue nevi and osteopoikilosis. Several associated systemic abnormalities have been reported, but morbidity and mortality are generally not affected.

De Quervain's syndrome associated with osteopoikilosis: a case report and review of the literature.

Osteopoikilosis is a rare, usually asymptomatic, autosomal-dominant bone disorder, which is generally diagnosed incidentally on X-ray. De Quervain's syndrome is a disorder characterized by pain on the radial (thumb) side of the wrist, impairment of thumb function and thickening of the ligamentous structure covering the tendons in the first dorsal compartment of the wrist. In this case report, we present a young woman with De Quervain's syndrome associated with osteopoikilosis.

Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome with striking phenotypic variation resulting from a novel c.2203C>T nonsense mutation in LEMD3.

The Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome (BOS) (MIM 166700) is a rare autosomal dominant disorder with highly variable expression that consists of multiple cutaneous elastic nevi and osteopoikilosis. It may exhibit clinical variations, and in some patients either skin or bone lesions may be absent. Recently it has been demonstrated that the heterozygous loss of function in LEMD3 can result in osteopoikilosis, BOS, and melorheostosis. We have studied three generations in a family with BOS with a variable phenotype. The genetic analyses revealed a heterozygous c.2203C>T nonsense mutation at the LEMD3 locus. The mutation induces a change in the 735 arginine codon to a stop codon. This study shows the wide phenotypic variation in BOS and increases the repertory of mutations described to date in LEMD3.

Osteopoikilosis and multiple exostoses caused by novel mutations in LEMD3 and EXT1 genes respectively--coincidence within one family.

BACKGROUND: Osteopoikilosis is a rare autosomal dominant genetic disorder, characterised by the occurrence of the hyperostotic spots preferentially localized in the epiphyses and metaphyses of the long bones, and in the carpal and tarsal bones 1. Heterozygous LEMD3 gene mutations were shown to be the primary cause of the disease 2. Association of the primarily asymptomatic osteopokilosis with connective tissue nevi of the skin is categorized as Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome (BOS) 3. Additionally, osteopoikilosis can coincide with melorheostosis (MRO), a more severe bone disease characterised by the ectopic bone formation on the periosteal and endosteal surface of the long bones 456. However, not all MRO affected individuals carry germ-line LEMD3 mutations 7. Thus, the genetic cause of MRO remains unknown. Here we describe a familial case of osteopoikilosis in which a novel heterozygous LEMD3 mutation coincides with a novel mutation in EXT1, a gene involved in aetiology of multiple exostosis syndrome. The patients affected with both LEMD3 and EXT1 gene mutations displayed typical features of the osteopoikilosis. There were no additional skeletal manifestations detected however, various non-skeletal pathologies coincided in this group. METHODS: We investigated LEMD3 and EXT1 in the three-generation family from Poland, with 5 patients affected with osteopoikilosis and one child affected with multiple exostoses. RESULTS: We found a novel c.2203C > T (p.R735X) mutation in exon 9 of LEMD3, resulting in a premature stop codon at amino acid position 735. The mutation co-segregates with the osteopoikilosis phenotype and was not found in 200 ethnically matched controls. Another new substitution G > A was found in EXT1 gene at position 1732 (cDNA) in Exon 9 (p.A578T) in three out of five osteopoikilosis affected family members. Evolutionary conservation of the affected amino acid suggested possible functional relevance, however no additional skeletal manifestations were observed other then those specific for osteopoikilosis. Finally in one member of the family we found a splice site mutation in the EXT1 gene intron 5 (IVS5-2 A > G) resulting in the deletion of 9 bp of cDNA encoding three evolutionarily conserved amino acid residues. This child patient suffered from a severe form of exostoses, thus a causal relationship can be postulated. CONCLUSIONS: We identified a new mutation in LEMD3 gene, accounting for the familial case of osteopoikilosis. In the same family we identified two novel EXT1 gene mutations. One of them A598T co-incided with the LEMD3 mutation. Co-incidence of LEMD3 and EXT1 gene mutations was not associated with a more severe skeletal phenotype in those patients.

Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome in a 6-year-old patient: clinical and histopathological aspects of a rare disease.

Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome (BOS) is a rare genetic hereditary genodermatosis characterized by benign skeletal and cutaneous lesions. Skeletal alterations known as osteopoikilosis (OPK) or "spotted bone disease" are asymptomatic areas of sclerosing dysplasia. Two skin lesion patterns have been described because they may be of either elastic tissue (juvenile elastoma) or collagenous composition (dermatofibrosis lenticularis disseminata). We present the case of a 6-year-old male patient with yellowish papules that coalesced to form plaques localized on both thighs and on the upper limbs consistent with a connective tissue nevus (CTN) diagnosis. X-ray examination of the skeletal system revealed the presence of multiple small areas (measuring between 1 and 7 mm) of increased bone density (OPK) bilaterally. A skin biopsy was performed and did not show striking alterations in the number or dimension of the extracellular matrix fibers, but it showed mucin deposition between them, which is compatible with a CTN. This study reports on the clinical presentation and histological examination of this unusual disease.

Novel and recurrent germline LEMD3 mutations causing Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome and osteopoikilosis but not isolated melorheostosis.

Mutations in the LEMD3 gene were recently incriminated in Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome (BOS) and osteopoikilosis, with or without melorheostosis. The relationship of this gene with isolated sporadic melorheostosis is less clear. We investigated LEMD3 in a two-generation BOS family showing an extremely variable expression of the disease, in a sporadic patient with skin features of BOS, and in an additional subject with isolated melorheostosis. We identified two different mutations, both resulting in a premature stop codon, in the two cases of BOS. The mutation (c.2564G>A) reported in the familial case is novel, while that observed in the sporadic case (c.1963C>T) has been previously reported in an American woman with osteopoikilosis and melorheostosis who had a family history of isolated osteopoikilosis. The search for mutations in DNA extracted from the peripheral blood, as well as skin and bone biopsies of the patient with melorheostosis failed to identify any pathogenic change. Our results further expand the LEMD3 mutation repertoire, corroborate the extreme interfamilial and intrafamilial clinical variability of LEMD3 mutations, and underline the lack of a clear phenotype-genotype correlation in BOS. The present study supports the general conclusion that LEMD3 mutations do not contribute to isolated sporadic melorheostosis. The genetic or epigenetic influences that are responsible for the development of melorheostosis require further investigation.

The heterozygous Lemd3 +/GT mouse is not a murine model for osteopoikilosis in humans.

Osteopoikilosis and the Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome are skeletal dysplasias with hyperostotic lesions in the long bones. These disorders are caused by heterozygous loss-of-function mutations in the LEMD3 gene. LEMD3 codes for a protein of the inner nuclear membrane that, through interaction with R-SMADs, antagonizes the BMP and TGF beta 1 pathway. It is suggested that the hyperostotic lesions in these disorders are caused by enhanced BMP and TGFbeta1 signaling. The exact mechanism by which mutations in the LEMD3 gene lead to these bone lesions has not yet been unraveled precisely. To further assess this, an Lemd3 gene-trapped mouse was created in a gene-trapping program by Baygenomics. To investigate whether the heterozygous gene-trapped mouse is a good model for osteopoikilosis in humans, we studied these mice radiologically with high-resolution micro-computed tomography (microCT) and histologically. X-ray images were evaluated by a trained radiologist, but no typical osteopoikilosis lesions could be recognized. On all microCT reconstructed images a 3D cortical and trabecular quantitative analysis was performed, investigating different histomorphometric parameters ranging from percent bone volume, bone surface/volume ratio over trabecular thickness, separation, number, and pattern factor to structure model index and fractal dimension. No significant differences were found after a t-test statistical analysis. Also, histological analysis did not reveal lesions typical for osteopoikilosis. We conclude that the heterozygous Lemd3 gene-trapped mouse is not a good model to study osteopoikilosis and the Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome.

Papular elastorrhexis, a distinctive entity?

Papular elastorrhexis is a rare entity of elastic tissue characterized by multiple white papules usually located on the trunk. We report a case of papular elastorrhexis in a 22-year-old man with sparse lesions and discuss the main controversial facts in this entity: its consideration as an independent disease or as an incomplete form of Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome and the confusion with and its possible inclusion as a variant of elastic tissue naevi.

[Two cases of papular elastorrhexis]. / Elastorrhexie papuleuse : deux cas.

BACKGROUND: Papular elastorrhexis is a rare dermatosis characterized by asymptomatic papules on the trunk and the upper extremities. Histological examination shows loss and fragmentation of elastic fibres as well as thickening of collagen bundles. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Case 1: a 46-year-old man was examined with asymptomatic papular lesions for 20 years. Firm and clearly delineated papules ranging from few millimetres to 2cm in diameter became wrinkled at their surface. They were located on the back and symmetrically on the upper limbs. The oldest of them were 15cm wide. Histological examination showed thickened collagen bundles with almost complete loss of dermal elastic fibres, fragmentation of elastic fibres around the lesion and mucin deposits. Standard laboratory tests and bone X-rays were normal. Case 2: a 34-year-old man consulted for clearly delineated asymptomatic papules on the back present for four years. Histological examination was similar to the previous patient and the laboratory tests were normal. He developed Hodgkin's lymphoma. DISCUSSION: We report these two cases because of their particularities as well as the rarity of papular elastorrhexix. The first exhibited large lesions and mucin deposits while the second was associated with Hodgkin's disease. Differential diagnosis of papular elastorrhexis includes Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome, eruptive collagenoma and elastic tissue disorders: macular anetoderma, mid-dermal elastolysis, nevus anelasticus, acne scars and pseudoxanthoma elasticum. The aetiology is unknown. There are no extracutaneous signs.

[Osteopecilia associated with psoriatic arthritis]. / Ostéopoécilie associée à un rhumatisme psoriasique.

Osteopecilia is a benign and rare condensing osteopathy. Its association with inflammatory rheumatism is very rare. We here report the case of a 25-year old patient with skin psoriasis, presenting with groin pain of inflammatory origin. Physical examination showed limitation of hip motions, lower limb-length inequality and pain on right sacroiliac mobilization. Laboratory tests showed inflammatory syndrome and negative immunological assessment. The radiograph of the pelvis revealed osteopecilia associated with destructive coxitis. CT scan of the pelvis showed coxitis and osteopecilia associated with bilateral sacroiliitis. The diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis associated with osteopecilia was retained. The patient was treated with methotrexate and NSAIDS. Osteopecilia usually is unexpectedly detected. Diagnostic radiology is essential to avoid unnecessary explorations and treatments.