. The face,
scalp, lower trunk, groins and flanks are the parts chiefly affected.
The view advanced by Darier, that the malady was due to psorosperms, is
now denied, the bodies thought to be such having been demonstrated to be
due to cell transformation.

As to treatment, in one instance the induction of a substitutive
dermatic inflammation had a favorable influence.

#Molluscum Epitheliale.#
(_Synonyms:_ Molluscum Contagiosum; Molluscum Sebaceum; Epithelioma
Molluscum.)

#Give a definition of molluscum epitheliale.#

Molluscum epitheliale is characterized by pin-head to pea-sized,
rounded, semi-globular, or flattened, pearl-like elevations, of a
whitish or pinkish color.

#Describe the symptoms and course of molluscum epitheliale.#

The usual seat is the face; not infrequently, however, the growths occur
on other parts. The lesions begin as pin-head, waxy-looking, rounded or
acuminated elevations, gradually attaining the size of small peas. They
have a broad base or occasionally may tend to become pedunculated. They
rarely exist in profusion, in most cases three to ten or twelve lesions
being present. When fully developed they are somewhat flattened and
umbilicated, with a central, darkish point representing the mouth of the
follicle. They are whitish or pinkish, and look not unlike drops of wax
or pearl buttons. At first they are firm, but eventually, in most cases,
tend to become soft and break down. Not infrequently, however, the
lesions disappear slowly by absorption, without apparent previous
softening. Their course is usually chronic. The contents, a
cheesy-looking mass, may commonly be pressed out without difficulty.

#What is the cause of molluscum epitheliale?#

It is now generally accepted that the disease is mildly contagious. It
occurs chiefly in children, and especially among the poorer classes. The
belief in the parasitic nature of the disease is gaining ground;
recently the opinion has been advanced that it is due to psorosperms
(psorospermosis); but further investigations have indicated that these
bodies were degenerated epithelia.

#State the pathology.#

[Illustration: Fig. 31. Molluscum Epitheliale.]

According to recent investigations, molluscum epitheliale is to be
regarded as a hyperplasia of the rete, the growth probably beginning in
the hair-follicles; the so-called molluscum bodies--peculiar, rounded or
ovoidal