ERYTHEMA NODOSUM

Abstract

ERYTHEMA nodosum, a disease characterized by transient nodules on the skin resembling bruises, may also be accompanied with fever and migratory arthritis. The common, mild form is usually seen and treated by dermatologists, while the severer examples are observed in hospitals, in which attention has been drawn to the systemic symptoms. It is the latter which have caused confusion over the many different conditions which may initiate erythema nodosum. Reviews of the voluminous literature on the subject¹ show how strongly entrenched the belief is that erythema nodosum is a form of either tuberculosis or rheumatic fever. Only recently has a plurality of causes been recognized and the role of hypersensitivity studied. A brief review of the obvious causes of erythema nodosum indicates how little clearcut information is available. For this reason the present clinical study has been arranged to describe the natural history of the disease. Such an approach