Chondrodermatitis of the Ears

Abstract

Under the title of "Chondrodermatitis Nodularis Chronica Helicis," Winkler¹in 1916 published the first study of painful nodules of the helix. The lesions of his eight cases were described as being cherryseed size with firmly attached central crusts which were painful under pressure. Upon removal of the crusts a small well-defined ulcer with an erythematous base remained. The skin lesions were attached to the cartilage. Episodes of infection beneath the crusts were common. Winkler believed that the cartilage had been damaged by traumatic, chemical, or thermal influence to the extent that it acted as a foreign body, provoking an inflammatory reaction in the skin. Foerster's²(1918) findings on nodules of the helix, the first report in American literature, were in essential agreement with those of Winkler. In a 1929 report, Fox³classified similar nodules of the anthelix as chondrodermatitis nodularis chronica helicis. Lane and Bechet, in their