INTRODUCTION A RECENT article by Kierland1 on the subject of military dermatology emphasizes the importance of dermatitis of the feet, with the many disabling weeks of illness that can ensue. He underlines how very little effective research in the prevention and cure of these dermatoses has been undertaken to date. We, in dealing with a civilian population, have also been struck by the large number of patients seen with disabling dermatosis of the feet, disabling enough to warrant hospitalization. We have seen patients who have suffered recurrent attacks of dermatitis of the feet for years. To appreciate the real problem not only must one see the patient who cannot walk because of localized, oozing, painful lesions of the feet, but one must also see the patient who has developed a secondary generalized dermatitis. One must also see such patients with the cellulitis, lymphangitis and lymphadenitis, thrombophlebitis, and even