Blue rubber bleb nevus (BRBN) syndrome is a rare disorder characterized by distinctive cutaneous and gastrointestinal vascular malformations. The latter may lead to bleeding complications. We followed four affected children for at least 5 years. The evolution of their disease and the value of pharmacologic agents (steroids, interferon) in the management of some of these patients are discussed.

The coexistence of linear porokeratosis (LP) and disseminated superficial actinic porokeratosis (DSAP) in a 3-year-old girl with a family history of DSAP is presented. Happle proposed loss of heterozygosity (LOH) to explain the origin of this unusual phenomenon. Homozygosity would explain why lesions in LP are far more pronounced than those of the associated heterozygous DSAP lesions. LOH would also explain the early age of presentation of the linear lesions, the family history of DSAP, and why LP cases are particularly prone to malignant transformation. This case is also important for molecular studies because of the presence of heterozygous and homozygous mutated cells in the same patient and the familial occurrence of the heterozygous form of the disease.

Aplasia cutis congenita is a rare disorder characterized by localized absence of skin at birth. Type V in Frieden's classification, which is associated with fetus papyraceous or placental infarcts, occurs as a large cutaneous defect on the trunk and extremities. The patient we report had a lesion affecting the trunk and extremities symmetrically, with no family history of the disorder or chromosomal abnormalities. In our opinion, despite the absence of fetus papyraceous or placental infarct, this patient's condition can be classified as type V.

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