1. Bony spurs resulting from erosion of the scaphoid bone and trapezium in rheumatoid arthritis can pierce the floor of the carpal tunnel and cause attrition rupture of flexor tendons–most often the flexor pollicis longus tendon. 2. It is difficult to show these spurs on conventional radiographs, but using a special tomographic technique we have been able to explore the floor of the carpal tunnel in three planes. Using this technique we have been able to guard the flexor pollicis longus against attrition rupture by early excision of a spur from the scaphoid bone. 3. Our findings support the recommendation of free division of the flexor retinaculum in rheumatoid arthritis. When doing this the surgeon should always look for a bony spur piercing the floor of the carpal tunnel.

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A new radiographic method for estimation of the vertical position of the patella in extension is presented. The vertical position of the patella determined by this method and the length of the ligament, patella and its surface were all found to be related to body-height. The vertical position of the patella may thus be expressed as its ratio to body-height: the vertical index of the patella.

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76 patients with acute maxillary sinusitis were treated with oral erythromycin stearate (500 mg twice or 3 times a day for 10 days). The mean concentration of erythromycin in the sinus secretion after 3-5 days' treatment was 0.6 mug/ml with the lower dosage and 1.3 mug/ml with the higher. The concentration of erythromycin in the sinus secretion was, on the average, 10-20 times higher than the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for group A streptococci and pneumococci, and reached MIC values for 15-30% of 100 examined strains of Haemophilus influenzae. 81% of the patients given the smaller and 94% of those given the larger dose improved or recovered. Radiological improvement was demonstrated in both groups. The infections with H. influenzae tended to respond somewhat less to the treatment than those with pneumococci. Comparisons of the roentgen findings and the findings at aspiration showed good agreement. An extra projection taken with the patient recumbent and the affected side downwards gave no information above that obtained from the routine projections. The large dose caused side effects more often (in 17/41 patients) than the smaller one (4/35 patients). In 10 patients treatment was discontinued because of side effects; 8 of them had received the larger dose.