Ultrasound biomicroscopy of eyelid eccrine hidrocystoma

A 58-year-old white female noted a lesion on her left lower eyelid, present for 3 months. Examination disclosed a dark-blue, subepithelial, smooth mass along the cilia near the punctum. The lesion did not transmit light and was thought to be a solid mass, such as a deep-blue nevus or melanoma versus a cystic mass with internal debris. Ultrasound biomicroscopy showed a fairly circumscribed echolucent mass measuring 3.2 x 3.5 mm suggestive of a cyst with numerous internal echo impedances. Following resection, histopathologic evaluation disclosed a cyst lined by a dual layer of eccrine sweat ductal epithelium, consistent with eccrine hidrocystoma.

Eyelid hidrocystomas can be pigmented and can be confused clinically with melanocytic tumors. Ultrasound biomicroscopy can provide helpful diagnostic information about the internal architecture of such lesions.