We report a case of a giant cystic cutaneous adnexal hamartoma which showed fibrofollicular units embedded in the stroma with aberrant fat tissue. There were many sebaceous lobules in the fibrofollicular units, and its histologic features were consistent with conventional folliculosebaceous cystic hamartoma. Given the unique clinical history and appearance, this lesion is considered to be a congenital variant.

Electron microscopic observations, as well as in vitro experiments, on experimental Fusarium solani keratitis of rabbits were performed to study the mode of fungal invasion into the corneal stroma, the interactions between E solani and inflammatory cells under the influence of topical dexamethasone (DXM) treatment, and the survival mechanism of the fungi in the DXM-treated cornea. Electron microscopy showed that, while the fungus invaded into the corneal stroma, digestion of collagen fibrils occurred around the hyphae, where amorphous material was often noted. In DXM-nontreated cornea, the fungal hyphae were entrapped by pseudopodia of the neutrophils and destruction of the hyphae was noted on day 3 of infection, most hyphae having disappeared by day 7. In the DXM-treated cornea, however, neutrophils could not ingest and destroy the hyphae. In qualitative nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT)-reduction tests using rabbit peripheral blood neutrophils, DXM significantly suppressed the rate of NBT-reduction and the rate of adherence to the fungal microconidia. In the DXM-treated corneal lesions, a considerable increase in both number and size of fungal peroxisomes was noted. Furthermore, the hyphae, surrounded by neutrophils, showed double or triple cell wall formation or sometimes a hypha-in-hypha structure.Similar hypha-in-hypha structures were also observed when the organisms were treated in vitro with a fungistatic concentration of H20> We suggest that this special structure is a protective device produced for the survival of E solani when subject to neutrophil attack in the DXM-treated cornea.Fusarium species are widely distributed in nature, being detected mainly in soils and on plants. They are important plant pathogens [23] and are now recognized as opportunistic pathogens causing keratitis [11,21,27], infections of burns [1,28] and systemic infection in immunologically compromised patients [18,30]. Among the Fusarium species, Fusarium solani is the most commonly found etiologic agent of mycotic keratitis in Japan where its incidence has increased [15]. Corneal trauma is probably a major predisposing factor for E solani infection [11,21,27]. It is also well known that clinical use of corticosteroid eye drops exacerbates the infection [9,19].Inoculation of cultured E solani into rabbit cornea caused keratitis where the fungi grew in the corneal stroma [8,14]. In these lesions, the killing process by the infiltrating neutrophils was noted 3 days after inoculation and the lesions healed spontaneously thereafter. When corticosteroid eye solution was applied topically, the fungi grew much more rapidly and survived much longer in the cornea [14]. However, the mechanisms of invasion of the fungi, killing of the fungi by neutrophils, and exacerbation of the experimental keratitis by topical corticosteroids, are still not clear. To investigate these

We report a peculiar nevus which occurred on the left side of the chin of an 18-year-old male. It had been present for four years and had grown rapidly during the last year. Histologically, many hair follicles, smooth muscles, and striated muscles were found within the reticular dermis. The hair follicles were accompanied by mature sebaceous glands; numerous eccrine glands were seen in the middle and deep dermis. Immunohistochemical stain and phosphotungstic acid hematoxylin stain supported the fact that the muscles seen between the follicles were both smooth and striated. This nevus was considered to be a hair follicle nevus accompanied by hyperplasia of smooth muscles and striated muscles.

Retired former workers of Matsuo Arsenic Mine of Miyazaki prefecture in Japan were subjected to extensive medical examination. The number of retired workers subjected to examination were 61 of 208 workers who were engaged in the works of the mine and were tracked down by the work rolls. These workers left the mine more than 15 years prior to the time of the examination. The main works in the mine were classified as mining, dressing of ores, refining, and clerical work. Several findings such as arsenodermatitis, depigmentation, performation of nasal septum, hyposmia, anosmia, and peripheral nervous disturbance attributed to exposure to arsenic were observed in 9 of 21 roasters who often worked in the arsenic kitchen. No characteristic findings of arsenic poisoning, that is, gastrointestinal disturbance, disorder of the cardiovascular system, hematopoietic disorders, or liver disturbance were observed in the retired workers. Another notable finding was that 8 cases diagnosed as pneumoconiosis were found in 18 miners.

Nodules or cysts of the oral mucosa occurred with an incidence of 88.7 per cent in 541 Japanese newborn infants. No infant was over 8 days old. This incidence is higher than that reported in Caucasian and Negro newborns. It may be suggested that the frequency of visible nodules have a close relation to growth and development in the fetal life, because the cysts seen in newborns can be recognized histologically in most fetuses, as demonstrated in other papers. Although a variety of terminology for these nodules have been used, these oral cysts can be classified as follows: gingival cyst in the newborn (dental lamina cyst) and median palatal mucosal cyst (Epstein's pearl).