Adenolipoma of the Skin: A Report of 11 Cases

Adenolipoma is a relatively recently described lesion representing a rare variant of lipoma in which eccrine glands and ducts are found interspersed amongst mature adipose tissue. This benign lesion was first described by Hitchcock et al. in 1993 [J Am Acad Dermatol 1993; 29: 82-85]. The next case series was written by Ait-Ourhrouil and Grosshans [Ann Dermatol Venerol 1997; 124: 845-848] in which they deemed adenolipoma a misnomer based on the pathophysiology of the lesion and suggested the name peri-sudoral lipoma instead. According to our knowledge, this case series would be the third in the literature to report cases of adenolipoma in an attempt to increase awareness of this entity.

We performed a retrospective review of adenolipoma cases from 2004 to 2014 at our institute.

Upon review of all adenolipomas diagnosed at our institute between 2004 and 2014, 11 cases in total were identified. Histologically, these lesions consisted of an admixture of adult-like adipose tissue and scattered eccrine glands and ducts. 4 cases also showed areas of myxoid changes; 2 showed scattered mast cells amongst the adipose tissue, and only 1 showed the presence of apocrine glands in addition to the eccrine glands and ducts. The female to male ratio was 6: 5. The typical age ranged from 41 to 53 years. Adenolipomas were seen arising from various locations including the thighs, gluteal region, lower leg, shoulder, chest, and trunk. The majority of cases were not fully encapsulated and the size varied from 0.7 to 5.8 cm.