Congenital hypertrichosis lanuginosa is a rare disorder characterized by excessive lanugo hair present at birth covering the entire body surface except the mucosae, palms, and soles (summary by De Raeve and Keymolen, 2011).

Cantú syndrome is characterized by congenital hypertrichosis; distinctive coarse facial features (including broad nasal bridge, wide mouth with full lips and macroglossia); enlarged heart with enhanced systolic function or pericardial effusion and in many, a large patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) requiring repair; and skeletal abnormalities (thickening of the calvaria, broad ribs, scoliosis, and flaring of the metaphyses). Other cardiovascular abnormalities may include dilated aortic root and ascending aorta with rare aortic aneurysm, tortuous vascularity involving brain and retinal vasculature, and pulmonary arteriovenous communications. Generalized edema (which may be present at birth) spontaneously resolves; peripheral edema of the lower extremities (and sometimes arms and hands) may develop at adolescence. Developmental delays are common, but intellect is typically normal; behavioral problems can include attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and depression.

Hypertrichosis is defined as hair growth that is excessive for a particular site of the body or age of the patient and that is not hormone-dependent (summary by Fantauzzo et al., 2012). Genetic Heterogeneity of Congenital Generalized Hypertrichosis HTC1 has been mapped to chromosome 8q. HTC2 (307150) is caused by palindrome-mediated interchromosomal insertion at chromosome Xq27. HTC3 (135400), which can occur with or without associated gingival hyperplasia, is caused by deletion or duplication at chromosome 17q24 or by mutation in the ABCA5 gene (612503) on chromosome 17q24. Also see lanugo-like generalized congenital hypertrichosis (145700).

Extreme hirsutism with gingival fibromatosis follows a dominant pattern of inheritance (Weski, 1920; Garn and Hatch, 1950). There is no necessary relationship between the age of development of the gingival changes and the hypertrichosis. The latter may be present at birth but often appears at puberty (Anderson et al., 1969). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of congenital generalized hypertrichosis, see HTC1 (145701).

X-linked congenital generalized hypertrichosis is an extremely rare type of hypertrichosis lanuginosa congenita, a congenital skin disease, which is characterized by hair overgrowth on the entire body in males, and mild and asymmetric hair overgrowth in females. It is associated with a mild facial dysmorphism (anterverted nostrils, moderate prognathism), and, in a kindred, it was also associated with dental anomalies and deafness.