Familial osteodystrophy of the skull and face.

For many years intermittent attention has been paid to the aptly named phenomenon of leontiasis ossea. Numerous conditions affecting the appearance of the face have been included but the application of a reasonable definition, such as appears in Dorland’s Medical Dictionary, makes a considerable proportion of cases unworthy of the designation. Dorland declares the condition to be a bilateral and symmetrical change in the bones of the face and cranium leading to a lion-like facial expression. Considering only the contracted group of conditions which have been more accurately named I could find no familial incidence recorded. This prompts me to report briefly the findings in three British Columbian children of one family which has been studied and investigated. These three children, all girls, were first seen in 1953, aged eight, six and two years. The older children were the more affected and a baby brother one year old appeared normal.