Periarthritis of the shoulder 1. Aetiological considerations with particular reference to

Periarthritis of the shoulder. Aetiological considerations with particular reference to personality factors. 186 patients with periarthritis of the shoulder have been studied. The sex ratio was female: male, 1-52: 1. The peak age of onset was 54-59 years in both sexes. Over 40 % of the patients were referred to the clinic after 6 months had elapsed from the time of onset of the disease. The right shoulder was more frequently involved than the left, particularly in the men. One shoulder only was affected in 75 % of patients. There was frequently a previous history of 'rheumatism ' before the episode of peri-arthritis. In one-third of the women 'nonspecific rheumatism ' had occurred. Cervico-brachial pain and a previous episode of shoulder pain had occurred more often in the women. There were a number of associated diseases, ischaemic heart disease, thyroid disease among women, diabetes among women, hemiplegia, pulmonary tuberculosis, chronic bronchitis, and epilepsy. Acute trauma was rarely a precipitating factor. Manual workers were more frequently seen than sedentary workers in the sample, and there were more in the sample than in the general population of Leeds