Parry Romberg Syndrome: The Socially Appalling Yet Less Acknowledged Diagnosis: Case Series and Literature Review

• Published in: Journal of pioneering medical sciences 2018-01, Vol.8 (1), p.13-17
• Main Authors: Ali Zohair Nomani, Haris Majid Rajput, Usman Ali
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Asymmetry; Baldness; Epilepsy; Immunoglobulins; Literature reviews; Migraine; Neurology; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Scleroderma; Skin; Surgery; Well being
• ISSN: 2309-7981; 2309-7981

The dilemma of facing a facial cosmetic issue at a young age is the most troublesome symptom hampering social well-being. Beginning in the teen ages and progressing to variable extents, Parry Romberg Syndrome (PRS) leads to facial asymmetry in the form of hemiatrophy secondary to loss of subcutaneous tissues, often fat but sometimes the underlying muscles and bones. It is indistinctly associated with seizure disorders at times or with other neurological sequelae. The first case was an 18 year old Pakistani male who presented with progressive wasting of the left side of the face for the past two and a half years. The second case was an 18-year-old Pakistani girl who presented to the neurology OPD with primary complaints of a seizure disorder for 3 years. In addition, she had progressive subtle asymmetry of her face. Over the course of time, a faint curvilinear grooved line showed up towards the right side of her forehead reaching on to her head up to the vertex. She also had hair loss ipsilateral to the line. The presentation of above cases depicts that although some features of PRS like facial asymmetry is characteristic, the presentation of a patient primarily with seizures should ideally include a thorough search for a secondary cause or of possible associations so that prognosis can be defined and appropriate interventions planned.