The Significance of Aschoff Bodies in the Left Atrial Appendage

THE development of a practical operation for mitral stenosis during the past five years has provided an unusual opportunity for interval study of the myocardium in a large number of patients with chronic rheumatic heart disease. The high incidence of Aschoff bodies in the surgical specimens has been an unexpected finding (Table 1). In our series of 40 cases it was 55 per cent.This is out of line with the clinical evidence of rheumatic activity and is especially puzzling since less than half the group had a history of rheumatic fever, and all had been carefully scrutinized to exclude . . .