Spectacle-induced nasal dermochalasis—a new entity

The nasal skin is supported by a cartilaginous and bony framework. Due to the loose attachments between the skin and the underlying nasal bones, the radix skin is more mobile compared to the distal part of the nose. This, for example, affords simple primary closure of small skin defects, a process that is more demanding at the distal area overlying the cartilaginous framework. In this paper, we show that when continuous external load cycling force is applied over the radix skin, the combination of proximal skin mobility and distal anchoring may result in significant stretching of the radix skin. Three patients with excess radix skin due to prolonged external stretching by heavy spectacles are presented. We suggest calling this entity spectacle-induced nasal dermochalasis. To the best of our knowledge, although spectacles are the most prevalent medical aid used worldwide, this clinical entity has never been described before in the English literature.