Progressive hemifacial atrophy in a patient with lupus erythematosus

This is a single case report describing a young woman with progressive facial atrophy that began at age 15. After she underwent commissuroplasty and collagen injection at age 29, her symptoms continued to progress, and she was ultimately shown to have serologic evidence of systemic lupus. She had a "remission of symptoms" after commencement of medical treatment (chloroquine and topical steroids) for her lupus. The association of progressive hemifacial atrophy and lupus is not new. This case and other cases associated with different autoimmune diseases suggest an autoimmune collagen-vascular origin for some cases of progressive facial atrophy. Furthermore, there is a need to modify the surgical approach in light of concurrent disease.