Abstract
We reported two cases of acquired lymphangiectasia associated with rheumatoid arthritis. The first case was a 63-year-old woman who had red nodules and papules on her right elbow. The second case was a 52- year-old man who had erythema on his right knee and red nodules and papules on his left knee. Both patients had been treated for rheumatoid arthritis. Histologically, the skin lesions consisted of widely dilated vascular structures developing with inflammatory cell (mainly lymphocytic) infiltration in the superficial dermis. In the first case, the cutaneous lesions were totally excised without any surgical treatment of the elbow joint. In contrast, in the second case, the skin lesions were cured by arthroscopic synovectomy and joint replacement. Neither case had any recurrence of the skin lesions. Acquired lymphangiectasia has been reported to be mainly caused by operation or radiotherapy. Our two cases are the first report of acquired lymphangiectasia associated with rheumatoid arthritis.
