• Ann Emerg Med · Jan 1992

    Case Reports

    Relapsing polychondritis: an unusual cause of painful auricular swelling.

    • M Coppola and D M Yealy.
    • Emergency Medicine Residency, Darnall Army Community Hospital, Fort Hood, Texas.
    • Ann Emerg Med. 1992 Jan 1; 21 (1): 81-5.

    AbstractAuricular pain, redness, and swelling are usually the result of infectious cellulitis. However, relapsing polychondritis is another cause of this symptom complex and is the result of an autoimmune phenomenon. It presents with inflammation and destruction of both articular and nonarticular cartilage, with the external ear and joint cartilage most often involved. Although usually indolent with multiple acute exacerbations, relapsing polychondritis can be rapidly fatal if the airway or cardiovascular system is involved. We present a case of relapsing polychondritis initially mistaken for auricular cellulitis. The clinical manifestations and course of relapsing polychondritis are reviewed, along with the emergency department management.

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