[Benign acute edematous polyarthritis in the elderly. Apropos of 4 cases]

Four retrospective cases of acute, benign, edematous polyarthritis are reported in elderly patients. These cases have in common a sudden onset of distal edema of the 4 extremities, which is severe, associated with primary or secondary joint pain and an inflammatory syndrome. A picture of symmetrical polyarthritis similar to rheumatoid polyarthritis develops secondarily. This polyarthritis is sero-negative. In less than 2 years, it spontaneously evolves into a complete cure without any clinical or radiological sequelae. This picture appears to be a specific entity in the elderly, different from rheumatoid polyarthritis. Ten identical cases have been reported by McCarty under the name of RS3PE syndrome. The onset with edema, sero-negativity and the spontaneous cure are the main characteristics. The nosology of this disease among "polyarthritis of the elderly", is discussed here.