Objectives: Chicken skin mucosa is a newly described endoscopic finding associated with colonic neoplasms in adults. Chicken skin mucosa was sought in children with juvenile polyps to determine the prevalence, endoscopic features, and location. An alternative theory is proposed for the pathogenic mechanism of this finding.
Methods: Children having colonoscopy and polypectomy were prospectively evaluated for the presence of chicken skin mucosa. The location of the polyps was determined at colonoscopy; the size of removed polyps was measured during processing of samples in pathology. Biopsies from colonic chicken skin mucosa were stained with hematoxylin and eosin and mucicarmine.
Results: Over a 1-yr period, 27 juvenile polyps were removed from 15 children at colonoscopy. Eleven of 15 children (73%) were found to have polyps with chicken skin mucosa; overall, 43% of the polyps had associated chicken skin mucosa. Chicken skin mucosa-positive polyps were larger than chicken skin mucosa-negative polyps and were only found in the rectosigmoid colon. Lipid-laden macrophages were found in all samples of chicken skin mucosa tested.
Conclusions: Chicken skin mucosa is a common finding in children with juvenile polyps. It probably is the result of local mucosal trauma, rather than a preneoplastic lesion.