Subcutaneous Nodules in Rheumatoid (Chronic Infectious) Arthritis

The occurrence of subcutaneous nodules in patients suffering from fever has long been recognized and has been the subject of intensive investigation by many workers. Carey Coombs1has recently stated that of all manifestations of orthodox infection—carditis, polyarthritis, subcutaneous nodules and chorea—the subcutaneous nodule is the most rheumatic of all. Swift2and other investigators have from time to time expressed similar views. Considerably less attention, however, has been paid to the subcutaneous nodules that occur in patients afflicted with rheumatoid arthritis3notwithstanding the fact that in this disease such a manifestation is an even more striking phenomenon. One of the oldest and, at the same time, one of the most complete descriptions of these nodules is that given by C. O. Hawthorne4in a monograph in which he describes the occurrence of subcutaneous nodules in a series of six patients and expresses the opinion