2004 Volume 16 Issue 3 Pages 371-376
Tonsillar focal infections have been suggested to play a role in the induction or exacerbation of autoimmune diseases. However, the detailed pathogenesis still remains unclear. We report cases of acrodermatitis continua of Hallopeau and multiple sclerosis, and discuss the suggestive pathogenesis as focal infections. The former case is a 50-year-old woman with a 3-month history of acrodermatitis continua in-volving fingertips, a nail, and a palm. We noted her history of chronic tonsillitis over 20 years, and then performed a tonsillectomy. Consequently, she was cured completely of those lesions. The latter case is a 28-year-old woman, who has been suffering from multiple sclerosis for 13 years with exacerbation of the disease triggered by tonsillitis at least 13 times. We performed a tonsillectomy on her. As a result, the frequency of disease exacerbation with upper respiratory infections decreased. No documentation of a case cured of both diseases by tonsillectomy has been reported.
