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…
People with diffuse systemic sclerosis (dcSSc) — a form of scleroderma that typically involves more extensive skin damage — have key cellular differences depending on the specific self-reactive antibody they have, and on how far along the disease trajectory they are, according to a new study. These differences were…
Treatment with iguratimod, an anti-inflammatory medication, reduced fibrosis (scarring) in cell and mouse models of scleroderma, a study from China reports. An approved therapy in that country, “iguratimod is a promising disease-modifying drug with an anti-fibrotic effect,” the researchers wrote. “It is reasonable to further investigate the efficacy of…
People with systemic sclerosis (SSc) have poorer survival when they also have both interstitial lung disease (ILD) and pulmonary hypertension (PH), a study in Germany has found. Being a woman, having a higher body mass index — a measure of body fat — and better lung function were…
A noninvasive form of vagus nerve stimulation therapy may help safely reduce pain in people with systemic sclerosis (SSc), a small Italian study has found. The technique, called transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS), which involves electrical stimulation to the vagus nerve through the skin on the outer ear…
The levels of two microRNAs are found altered in the bloodstream of adults with systemic sclerosis (SSc) compared with healthy people, according to a new study that suggests using these molecules as biomarkers of the disease. Elevated levels of one of them, called miR-21, is associated with scar formation,…
More than half of the people with systemic sclerosis (SSc) in a study were malnourished under recent French guidelines, one-quarter had severe malnutrition, and being malnourished associated with cardiac involvement, a study in that country reported. Gastrointestinal (GI) tract involvement, not surprisingly, also was evident in a majority of…
The European Patent Office has decided to grant MediciNova a patent covering the use of an investigational small molecule called MN-001 (tipelukast) for the treatment of scleroderma. Once issued, the patent is expected to expire no earlier than June 2035. This means that the company will hold exclusive rights…
People with scleroderma who report more severe disease symptoms tend to be younger and nonwhite, a new study reports. The study, “Patterns of patient-reported symptoms and association with sociodemographic and systemic sclerosis disease characteristics: a scleroderma Patient-centered Intervention Network (SPIN) Cohort cross-sectional study,” was published in …
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…
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