Methods. Subjects. Eleven unrelated patients with the typical appearance of MSL (figure 1) were seen at the Departments of Neurology or Plastic Surgery, University of Würzburg, from 1985 to 1993. They were all men aged 41 to 63 years. Lipomatosis was restricted largely to the neck and shoulders in eight and was more widespread in three. Most of the lipomas had developed within a few years. Chronic intake of alcohol (> 70 g/d) was reported by 10 patients. Clinical signs of a sensory neuropathy were present in seven patients, and five of these seven had signs of distal motor involvement. There were no clinical signs of myopathy in any patient. Patient 11 had ataxia and dysarthria in addition to MSL and neuropathy.