[Bilateral congenital lower lip fistulas].

Congenital lower labial fistulas are extremely rare. This deformity of the vermilion border of the lower lip constantly appears symmetrically to the midline in a frontal direction with blind ending ducts and oval openings. The different pathogenetic causes are reviewed in accordance with the different gradual malformations described in the literature. In contrast to the upper cleft lip and/or cleft palate, congenital bilateral fistulas of the lower lip form a new, distinct syndrome explained by an arrested development leading to cross sulci resulting from a pathological cleaving process. In most cases a striking inheritance pattern with an autosomal dominant trait is associated with this disease. A family suffering from bilateral congenital lower lip fistulas and their leukocyte antigens are presented. All members of this family affected with this anomaly expressed an A3 Bw60 antigen suggesting a close correlation with the HLA-system of the major histocompatibility complex on the leukocytes.