Involvement of the vulval skin appendages by intraepithelial neoplasia

In the treatment of vulval intraepithelial neoplasia (VIN) by laser, the extent to which the skin appendages are involved is an important factor in determining the depth of tissue to be destroyed. An investigation of 50 patients with VIN revealed that in 28 the skin appendages were involved and the maximum depth of involvement reached 4.6 mm from the surface of the epidermis. It is suggested that eradication of tissues to a depth of 5.0 mm would eliminate all atypical epithelium in the skin appendages.