Pathogenesis of the blister in cicatricial pemphigoid and in bullous pemphigoid. A comparative ultrastructural study

A comparative ultrastructural study of bullous lesions of four cases of Cicatricial Pemphigoid and three cases of Bullous Pemphigoid showed: a) in Bullous Pemphigoid the blister seems to form in the intermembrane space while the basal lamina is still visible on the floor of the blister, b) in Cicatricial Pemphigoid it is the basal lamina which appears to be directly affected, its disappearance probably being the consequence of a marked edema of the superficial dermis. It is pointed out that controversial ultrastructural information concerning dermo-epidermal bullous diseases can often be ascribed to the speed of blister formation, to the time at which the biopsy is performed and to the different techniques used in the preparation of specimens.