Progressive hemifacial atrophy in a Chinese patient: A case report

Progressive hemifacial atrophy (PHA) is a rare and progressive condition of unknown etiology that is characterized by chronic progressive atrophy of the skin, subcutaneous tissue, muscle, and bone on 1 side of the face. However, its precise pathogenesis remains poorly understood. CASE PRESENTATION: Here, we report a case of PHA, which manifested as left-sided facial atrophy. Whole-exome sequencing of peripheral blood samples from the patient and his parents, together with bioinformatics analyses, led to the identification of mutations in ARHGAP4 and CFAP47. CONCLUSION: This report is the first to describe ARHGAP4 and CFAP47 mutations in a patient with PHA. These mutations may be related to the occurrence of hemifacial atrophy, although further studies are needed to clarify the role of ARHGAP4 and CFAP47 in the context of PHA pathogenesis.