Bloodstream levels of a protein that plays a role in the body’s response to low oxygen may be an effective biomarker to assess abnormal changes in small blood vessels associated with systemic sclerosis (SSc), according to a recent study. Levels of the protein, called hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1), were significantly…
Plasma exchange helped reduce high blood pressure linked to scleroderma renal crisis (SRC) — a potentially life-threatening complication marked by abrupt blood pressure changes and acute kidney failure — in patients unresponsive to standard treatment, a case series study reported. Despite these successes, most patients still had impaired kidney…
Elevated activity of a blood-clotting protein called Factor XIII (FXIII) in the bloodstream of adults with systemic sclerosis (SSc) is tied to the presence of Raynaud’s phenomenon, a common SSc symptom, a small study suggests. While most study participants had FXIII activity levels within the normal range, “patients with…
Caregivers of children with juvenile scleroderma cited a lack of knowledge about the rare disease within the medical community as the primary barrier to a proper diagnosis and treatment, according to a new survey study. For more than a quarter of the children, it took more than a year…
Levels of microparticles, tiny molecule-filled sacs shed from cells, were altered in the bloodstream of adults with systemic sclerosis (SSc), a study reports. Elevated microparticles derived from blood-clotting platelets were associated with disease-related antibodies and longer disease duration. By contrast, lower levels of microparticles shed from endothelial cells that…
People with systemic sclerosis (SSc) who test positive for Scl-70 self-reactive antibodies are at a higher risk of major organ involvement, particularly the lungs, than those with other types of autoantibodies, a study suggested. Digestive tract involvement was associated with the presence of anti-nuclear (ANA) autoantibodies. SSc patients with…
Treatment with modified mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) — which can differentiate into a variety of cell types — alleviated the signs of skin scarring, or fibrosis, in a scleroderma mouse model, a study showed. These MSCs, a type of adult stem cell that can modulate immune responses and suppress inflammation,…
Researchers have developed a 3D blood vessel-on-a-chip model to investigate problems with blood vessel growth in systemic sclerosis (SSc), a study reported. Immune-mediated changes to blood vessels is an early and central event in SSc development and usually occurs before the onset of fibrosis — the buildup of scar…
Raynaud’s phenomenon or skin ulcer symptoms associated with scleroderma worsened in around one-third of patients after iloprost infusions were stopped for a spell at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey study of patients in Italy reported. A low density of small blood vessels predicted the worsening of symptoms…
Note: This story was updated June 14, 2023, to correct that patients receiving Ofev in the SENSCIS trial experienced a fourfold decline in lung function compared with a hypothetical group of matched healthy references, while those given Ofev declined by twofold. People treated with Ofev (nintedanib) for interstitial lung…
Get regular updates to your inbox.