Ankyloblepharon filiforme adnatum, a rare congenital anomaly, and difficult to explain, was first reported by Hasner in 1881. He has the distinction of having named the puzzling developmental defect. Eleven subsequent cases have been added to the literature, with but one appearing in the English language, completely described by Judge, Mott, and Gabriels.1 Since their article appeared, Mattsson2 and Lobstein and Haarscher3 have contributed further reports.
The bands are single or multiple, usually occur monocularly, and are somewhat elastic, although definitely limited in their extensibility. There is no definite relationship to prematurity, as only 1 case of 13 occurred in a 7-month premature infant. Sex has no bearing on the incidence. Most of the bands are located in the lateral halves of the lids; a few are nasally placed. One infant had an associated harelip, and another had a cardiac defect.
The bands are always located between