A TEST OF CONNECTIVE TISSUE STATE AND REACTIVITY IN COLLAGEN DISEASES*

Abstract

The rate at which connective tissue ground substance is disaggregated and restored after injection of hyaluronidase may be taken as an index of its initial state and its capacity for repair. This reaction was studied by an electrometric method involving the serial measurement of displaced Donnan potentials in the dermis. Normal persons and patients with rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma and systemic lupus erythematosus were compared. The results indicate that in these connective tissue diseases a ground substance is formed which differs both qualitatively and quantitatively from the normal. The rate of reconstitution after enzymatic action is markedly delayed. The administration of corticosteroids tends to reverse these conditions. The measurements of changes in the state of the ground substance after the injection of hyaluronidase is a useful test for evaluating connective tissue diseases and the effects of therapy.