THE TONSILS A GATEWAY FOR INFECTION.

Two recent papers have directed attention anew to this important topic, which, while seemingly threadbare, is frequently overlooked by the practician. That the tonsils are the locus of infection in diphtheria, scarlet fever, and other infections has long been known, but the relation between tonsillar inflammation and acute rheumatism is not yet universally acknowledged. In the Münchener Medicinische Wochenschrift for March 7, M. de Rochmont reports an epidemic which occurred in the Altona Hospital, following the admission of a patient suffering with acute articular rheumatism and follicular tonsillitis. From this patient seventeen others and a nurse, all in five wards on the same corridor, developed tonsillitis. As there had been no case of sore throat present until the admission of this patient, the source of infection seemed clear. This epidemic also showed how far from trifling is follicular tonsillitis. Of the eighteen cases, three had acute articular rheumatism following the