It is now 70 years since this condition was first described (Fox & Fordyce, 1902). Hormonal factors have been implicated in the aetiology (Shelley & Levy, 1956; Montes et al., 1961) and when a case of the disorder was seen recently the opportunity was taken to investigate the endocrine background by means of recent techniques (Mayes & Nugent, 1968; Norymberski, 1952; Horning et al., 1963; Kirschner & Lipsett, 1963; Cox, 1959).