Patricia Inácio, PhD, science writer —

Cognitive difficulties affected half of all scleroderma patients in a recent study in Italy, while malnutrition was found in more than one quarter. While no correlation was seen between cognitive impairment and malnutrition in the 100 patients involved, the presence of these complications associated with greater functional disability and…

Muscle disease is common in people with scleroderma and is associated with inflammation and specific end-organ involvement, according to an Australian study. The findings underscore the “clinical, functional, and prognostic importance of simple biomarkers ” for identifying SSc-related muscle disease, the study’s researchers wrote in “Proximal weakness…

Elevated levels of the gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) enzyme — involved in oxidative stress, a result of insufficient antioxidant defenses against toxic free radicals — were associated with a higher risk of developing scleroderma, a large South Korean study reports. “These findings could lead to a closer monitoring for high…

Kyverna Therapeutics is launching a Phase 1/2 trial to evaluate its investigational cell therapy KYV-101 in adults with diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis (dcSSc). The move follows the therapy’s recent clearance of an investigational new drug (IND) application by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The trial, called…

Blood levels of interleukin (IL)-6, a pro-inflammatory signaling molecule, do not link with a risk of pulmonary involvement in people with systemic sclerosis (SSc), a study reports. As a result, IL-6 “could not be regarded as a potential therapeutic target,” the researchers wrote in the study, “…

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) have a higher risk of death when compared with individuals with SSc alone, according to a new population-based study conducted in Denmark. The presence of additional co-occurring disorders, or comorbidities, other than ILDs, was found to gradually increase the risk of…

Elevated levels of certain blood proteins are associated with poorer long function and skin involvement in systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients, according to a recent study. In an analysis of data from the focuSSced Phase 3 trial that supported the approval of Actemra (tocilizumab) in the U.S., researchers also…

People with scleroderma perform worse in verbal fluency tasks than those with mild neurocognitive disorder due to Alzheimer’s disease, a new study reports. Researchers also found that scleroderma patients experience problems with memory, particularly prospective memory and working memory, which correlate with depressive symptoms. Prospective memory refers to remembering…

Blood levels of CCL24 are elevated in systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients compared to healthy people, according to a recent scientific presentation. Consistent with previous studies, higher CCL24 levels correlated with SSc severity, a threefold greater risk of interstitial lung disease (ILD) progression, and shorter five-year survival rates. “These…

Older age, problems in the larynx, or voice box, and being positive for certain autoantibodies is associated with a higher risk of having dysphagia — difficulty swallowing — in scleroderma patients, according to a single-center study. Esophageal dysmotility, when foods and liquids do not easily pass down the esophagus,…