The following case of severe diffuse telangiectasia of the arms and legs associated with progressive muscular weakness and leukopenia is reported because of its unusual features and unexplained etiology.
History.—
The patient has been observed from May, 1958, to April, 1960. She is a 58-year-old woman of English-Scottish extraction, whose past medical history reveals a panhysterectomy and bilateral oophorectomy because of menometrorrhagia at the age of 39, but no other significant illnesses. Her family history is noncontributory. In 1950, at the age of 48, she noticed weakness, riot associated with pain or tenderness, in her legs when climbing stairs. This weakness progressed, involving primarily the pelvic and shoulder girdle muscles, until 1958, when ambulation was limited to about 50 yd. There has been little change since she was first seen.Shortly after the onset of weakness, telangiectasia began on the anterior tibial regions. This spread to involve the entire skin