The rarity with which leiomyomas of the skin occur, especially when there are definite indications as to the origin of the neoplastic muscle fibers, makes this case worth reporting.
Leiomyomas of the skin were first described by Verneuil1 in 1858 in a specimen obtained in the dissecting room. In that case the tumor was found to be composed of muscular fibers, resembling in part those of the heart and in part those of the cells of the smooth muscles.
The clinical picture, i. e., pain on pressure, paroxysmal pain and the color of the tumor mass, was first described by Besnier2 in 1880, and it has been shown3 that these symptoms were persistent in about 70 per cent of the cases reported.
According to the classification of Babes,4 dermatomyomas may arise from the proliferation of the muscular walls of the blood vessels, hyperplasia of the arrectores