Rheumatoid nodules of the lung in a patient with palindromic rheumatism

We report a case of rheumatoid nodules of the lung seen in a patient with palindromic rheumatism. A 54-year-old man with palindromic rheumatism was admitted for evaluation of three nodules in the right upper lobe on chest roentgenogram. Wedge resection was performed for the purpose of confirmative diagnosis and treatment. Histology of these lung lesions revealed palisaded histiocytic cells surrounding a layer of central necrosis, which were considered to be characteristic findings of rheumatoid nodule. Such a case is extremely rare. To our knowledge, only one other case has been reported before in the literature.