[The elastic component of the stria alba. A morphometric and ultrastructural analysis].

Abstract - Bioptical samples of striae albae and of normal skin were taken during surgical abdominal lipectomy from multiparous and obese women. The observation of the specimens by light microscopy showed in the stria an atrophic epithelium, the disappearance of the dermal papillae and an increase of the elastic fibers arranged in long bundles perpendicular to the main axis of the stria and parallel to the skin surface.The electron microscopy showed the elastic fibers to have an electron-dense central core and a peripheral layer of highly electron-dense granular material. These characteristics recall the aspect of elastic fibers in the aging normal skin.