Necrotizing vasculitis of the gallbladder and the appendix. Similarity in the morphology of rheumatoid arteritis and Polyarteritis nodosa.

Two patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and polyarteritis nodosa (PN) presented with abdominal pain. Both revealed necrotizing vasculitis of the gallbladder and the appendix respectively. The controversial role of corticosteroids in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arteritis, the rarity of rheumatoid arteritis of the gallbladder and the morphologic similarity of the vascular lesion in the gallbladder and appendix are discussed.