Abstract
Harlequin ichthyosis (HI) is a rare and severe form of congenital ichthyosis. Linked to deletion and truncation mutations of a keratinocyte lipid transporter, HI is characterized by diffuse epidermal hyperkeratinization and defective desquamation. At birth, the HI phenotype is striking with thick hyperkeratotic plate-like scales with deep dermal fissures, severe ectropion and eclabium, among other findings. Over the first months of life, the hyperkeratotic covering is shed, revealing a diffusely erythematous, scaly epidermis, which persists for the remainder of the patient's life. Although HI infants have historically succumbed in the perinatal period related to their profound epidermal compromise, the prognosis of HI infants has vastly improved over the past 20 years. Here, we report a case of HI treated with acitretin, focusing on the multi-faceted management of the disease in the inpatient setting. A review of the literature of the management of HI during the perinatal period is also presented.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $21.58 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Akiyama M, Sugiyama-Nakagiri Y, Sakai K, McMillan JR, Goto M, Arital K et al. Mutations in ABCA12 in harlequin ichthyosis and functional rescue by corrective gene transfer. J Clin Invest 2005; 115: 1777–1784.
Kelsell DP, Norgett EE, Unsworth H, Teh MT, Cullup T, Mein CA et al. Mutations in ABCA12 underlie the severe congenital skin disease harlequin ichthyosis. Am J Hum Genet 2005; 76 (5): 794–803.
Sakai K, Akiyama M, Sugiyama-Nakagiri Y, McMillan JR, Sawamura D, Shimizu H . Localization of ABCA12 from Golgi apparatus to lamellar granules in human upper epidermal keratinocytes. Exp Dermatol 2007; 16 (11): 920–926.
Elias PM, Williams ML, Holleran WM, Jiang YJ, Schmuth M . Pathogenesis of permeability barrier abnormalities in the ichthyoses: inherited disorders of lipid metabolism. J Lipid Res 2008; 49 (4): 697–714.
Milner ME, O’Guin WM, Holbrook KA, Dale BA . Abnormal lamellar granules in harlequin's ichthyosis. J Invest Dermatol 1992; 99: 824–829.
Moskowitz DG, Fowler AJ, Heyman MB, Cohen SP, Crumrine D, Elias PM et al. Pathophysiologic basis for growth failure in children with ichthyosis: an evaluation of cutaneous ultrastructure, epidermal permeability barrier function, and energy expenditure. J Pediatr 2004; 145: 82–92.
Williams ML . Neonatal phenotypes in the ichthyoses. Ped Derm 2004; 21 (3): 308–309.
Akiyama M . Pathomechanisms of harlequin ichthyosis and ABCA transporters in human diseases. Arch Dermatol 2006; 142: 914–918.
Prasad RS, Pejaver RK, Hassan A, al Dusari S, Wooldridge MA . Management and follow-up of harlequin siblings. Br J Dermatol 1994; 130 (5): 650–653.
Grunau RE, Holsti L, Haley DW, Oberlander T, Weinberg J, Solimano A et al. Neonatal procedural pain exposure predicts lower cortisol and behavioral reactivity in preterm infants in the NICU. Pain 2005; 113: 293–300.
Grunau RE, Whitfield MF, Fay T, Holsti L, Oberlander T, Rogers ML . Biobehavioural reactivity to pain in preterm infants: a marker of neuromotor development. Dev Med Child Neuro 2006; 48: 471–476.
Anand KJ, Hall RW . Controversies in neonatal pain: an introduction. Semin Perinatol 2007; 31: 273–274.
Ergün O, Celik A, Ergün G, Ozok G . Prophylactic antibiotic use in pediatric burn units. Eur J Pediatr Surg 2004; 14 (6): 422–426.
Sheridan RL, Weber JM, Pasternack MS, Tompkins RG . Antibiotic prophylaxis for group A streptococcal burn wound infection is not necessary. J Trauma 2001; 51 (2): 352–355.
Ugburo AO, Atoyebi OA, Oyeneyin JO, Sowemimo GO . An evaluation of the role of systemic antibiotic prophylaxis in the control of burn wound infection at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital. Burns 2004; 30 (1): 43–48.
Gunes T . Harlequin baby with ecythma gangrenosum. Ped Derm 2003; 20 (6): 529–530.
Desai MH, Rutan RL, Heggers JP, Herndon DN . Candida infection with and without nystatin prophylaxis. A 11-year experience with patients with burn injury. Arch Surg 1992; 127 (2): 159–162.
Sheridan RL, Weber JM, Budkevich LG, Tompkins RG . Candidemia in the pediatric patient with burns. J Burn Care Rehabil 1995; 16 (4): 440–443.
O’Grady MJ, Dempsey EM . Antifungal prophylaxis for the prevention of neonatal candidiasis? Acta Paediatr 2008; 97 (4): 430–433.
Lacour M, Mehta-Nikhar B, Atherton DJ, Harper JI . An appraisal of acitretin therapy in children with inherited disorders of keratinization. Br J Dermatol 1996; 134 (6): 1023–1029.
Katugampola RP, Finlay AY . Oral retinoid therapy for disorders of keratinization: single-centre retrospective 25 years’ experience on 23 patients. Br J Dermatol 2006; 154 (2): 267–276.
Ingen-Housz-Oro S, Boudou P, Bergot C, Ibrahim F, Souberbielle JC, Dubertret L et al. Evidence of a marked 25-hydroxyvitamin D deficiency in patients with congenital ichthyosis. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol 2006; 20 (8): 947–952.
Chan YC, Tay YK, Tan LK, Happle R, Giam YC . Harlequin ichthyosis in association with hypothyroidism and juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Pediatr Dermatol 2003; 20 (5): 421–426.
Anderson GC, Moore E, Hepworth J, Bergman N . Early skin-to-skin contact for mothers and their healthy newborn infants. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2003; (2): CD003519.
Forcada-Guex M, Pierrehumbert B, Borghini A, Moessinger A, Muller-Nix C . Early dyadic patterns of mother-infant interactions and outcomes of prematurity at 18 months. Pediatrics 2006; 118 (1): e107–e114.
Layton J . A review of harlequin ichthyosis. Neonatal Netw 2005; 24 (3): 17–23.
Rajpar SF, Cullup T, Kelsell DP, Moss C . A novel ABCA12 mutation underlying a case of Harlequin ichthyosis. Br J Dermatol 2006; 155 (1): 204–206.
Singh S, Bhura M, Maheshwari A, Kumar A, Singh CP, Pandey SS . Successful treatment of harlequin ichthyosis with acitretin. Int J Dermatol 2001; 40 (7): 472–473.
Mukhopadhyay S, Agarwal R . Harlequin ichthyosis. Indian J Pediatr 2006; 73 (4): 351.
Ward PS, Jones RD . Successful treatment of a harlequin fetus. Arch Dis Child 1989; 64 (9): 1309–1311.
Lawlor F, Peiris S . Progress of a harlequin fetus treated with etretinate. J R Soc Med 1985; 78 (Suppl 11): 19–20.
Haftek M, Cambazard F, Dhouailly D, Réano A, Simon M, Lachaux A et al. A longitudinal study of a harlequin infant presenting clinically as non-bullous congenital ichthyosiform erythroderma. Br J Dermatol 1996; 135 (3): 448–453.
Roberts LJ . Long-term survival of a harlequin fetus. J Am Acad Dermatol 1989; 21: 335–339.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Harvey, H., Shaw, M. & Morrell, D. Perinatal management of harlequin ichthyosis: a case report and literature review. J Perinatol 30, 66–72 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2009.100
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2009.100
Keywords
This article is cited by
-
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis in Harlequin ichthyosis, a rare combination or the clinical spectrum of the disease? Report of a child treated with etanercept and review of the literature
Pediatric Rheumatology (2021)
-
Collodion baby treated at a tertiary hospital in Tanzania: a case report
Journal of Medical Case Reports (2018)
-
Bébé Arlequin : une ichtyose rare et unique. À propos d’un cas
Revue de médecine périnatale (2016)