Chest Wall Swelling Research Articles

Tietze's Syndrome

The disease of Tietze or Tietze's syndrome was first described in a German medical report in 1921. 1 It manifests itself by a usually unilateral, painful, benign, smooth, nonsuppurative swelling of the sternoclavicular or first to sixth sternocostochondral junction. Its etiology is unknown. Only three publications * on this subject, reporting 11 cases, have appeared in the American literature, all three during the past three years, whereas the total number of reported cases in the foreign literature exceeds 100 cases. It therefore seems justifiable to direct more attention to this entity in the differential diagnosis of anterior chest pain and chest wall swelling. Report of Cases Case 1. —A 35-year-old married white woman was first examined in February, 1952, because of a painful swelling involving the left first costosternal junction and present for the preceding two weeks. The pain radiated into the left shoulder and arm and was continuously present. There