[Sympathetic arthritis. A contribution to plasma cell osteomyelitis (author's transl)]

Sympathetic arthritis is a sterile, non-pyogenic complication due to adjacent bone disease, particularly chronic inflammatory osteomyelitis. Radiologically it is manifested as an arthrosis or serous arthritis (painful effusion), or as a chronic destructive arthitis. In the latter case, there is a lymphatic and plasma cell synovitis which may persist, clinically and radiologically, for a period of months or years before definite radiological signs of a chronic osteomyelitis become apparent. Observations of patients with plasma cell osteomyelitis and chronic destructive sympathetic arthritis indicate a special set of findings due to plasma cell osteomyelitis: metadiaphyseal ossifying periostitis, extreme demineralisation of the adjacent epiphysis with spotty focal sclerosis of the spongiosa and a chronic arthritis.