Summary
Cutis laxa is a connective tissue disorder due to deficiencies of elastic fibers. Skin shows hyperlaxity and seems flaccid with folds, especially around the face, conferring a prematurely aged look to the patient. Hereditary forms are usually transmitted as autosomal recessive or dominant traits and associate cutaneous disorders with a variety of visceral lesions. Secondary forms are sometimes associated with non-specific skin eruptions and may be caused by systemic or idiopathic amylosis. Finally some forms of cutis laxa are associated with other connective tissue disorders as in Ehlers-Danlos syndrome or elastic pseudoxanthoma. * Author: C. Blanchet-Bardon, M.D. (April 2002) *