Pulmonary lesions in the course of rheumatoid arthritis in children

Pulmonary morphological lesions are described in 16 children who died of rheumatoid arthritis. In all of them the disease had a stormy course. Generalized amyloidosis was the most frequent cause of death. The majority of cases showed clinical and morphological lung lesions. The lung lesions were only rarely the chief cause of death. There were no formations of the type of rheumatoid nodule nor diffuse lung fibrosis. There was only peribronchial and perivascular fibrosis as well as thickening of interalveolar septa. The most frequent abnormalities, namely lung congestion and edema could result from extrapulmonary causes or agony. Although the observed lung lesions are nonspecific, they can reflect the generalization of the disease.