[Epidermolysis bullosa gravis Herlitz. A challenge for a pediatric department].

Epidermolysis bullosa is the collective name for a heterogeneous group of inherited disorders characterized by marked fragility of the skin and formation of blisters following minor trauma to the skin. The pediatric departments at Telemark County Hospital, in Porsgrunn, and at the University Clinic, Haukeland Hospital, have cared for two babies subclassified as having the Herlitz type of the disease. This type has a very poor prognosis. The article includes a brief description of the disease, discusses practical and ethical problems and challenges, and describes the departments' attempts to tackle them.