| Scleroderma Medical News by Date |
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| November 2008 |
| Investigation of stressful life events in patients with systemic sclerosis. We reported a strong relationship between stressful life events and the initiation of systemic sclerosis. Our findings are consistent with current understanding of the extensive links of behavioral responses to stress with neurophysiological and biochemical processes. Chen Y. J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2008 Nov;9(11):853-6. (Also see: Causes of Scleroderma: Stress) |
| Sleep Apnea May Be Risk Factor for Sudden Cardiac Death, Mayo Clinic Research Concludes. After studying the sleep characteristics of nearly 11,000 adults in an overnight sleep laboratory, Mayo Clinic researchers suggest that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and, in particular, the low nighttime oxygen saturation of the blood it causes, may be a risk factor for sudden cardiac death. Mayo Clinic. 11/09/08. (Also see: Sleep Disorders) |
| Heating Heart with Catheter Better than Drugs for Common Heart Rhythm Disorder. Treating a common heart rhythm disorder by burning heart tissue with a catheter works dramatically better than drug treatments, a major international study has found. Loyola Medicine. 11/11/08. (Also see: Cardiac Complications) |
| Fever of unknown origin secondary to type I crescentic glomerulonephritis (CGN) and anti-SCl 70 antibodies without clinical manifestations of systemic sclerosis. Anti-Scl 70 antibodies are highly specific for scleroderma and are seldom present in other diseases. As far as we are aware there are no published cases of the association of type 1 CGN with anti-Scl 70 antibodies. Vega Stieb J. (PubMed) Clin Exp Nephrol. 2008 Oct;12(5):388-92. (Also see: Antibodies and Renal Involvement) |
| Watermelon stomach in systemic sclerosis: its incidence and management. Our series indicates that watermelon stomach should be considered when unexplained iron-deficiency anaemia occurs in systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients. Moreover, because watermelon stomach may be the first manifestation of SSc, patients with unexplained watermelon stomach should systematically undergo physical examination and autoantibody testing to detect the underlying SSc. Marie I. (PubMed) Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2008 Aug 15;28(4):412-21. (Also see: GAVE or Watermelon Stomach) |
| Endoscopic cryotherapy for the management of gastric antral vascular ectasia (G.A.V.E.). Endoscopic cryotherapy is a safe and effective treatment for GAVE. It appears to be effective, even for GAVE refractory to argon plasma coagulation therapy. Cho S. (PubMed) Gastrointest Endosc. 2008 Nov;68(5):895-902. Epub 2008 Jul 21. (Also see: GAVE or Watermelon Stomach) |
| Successful Treatment of Watermelon Stomach / GAVE Syndrome by Using Argon Plasma Coagulation. After 3 sessions, the lesions disappeared and the hemoglobin increased by 2.4 gm/dl without any need of transfusion. Bhatti MA. (PubMed) J Coll Physicians Surg Pak. 2008 Oct;18(10):641-3. (Also see: GAVE or Watermelon Stomach) |
| Pregnancy and rheumatic disease: "by the book" or "by the doc". We provide some general recommendations on how to manage a rheumatic disease during pregnancy including (a) preconception planning to ensure no teratogenic medications on board, (b) early disclosure of pregnancy to all caregivers including the rheumatologist, family physician, obstetrician, and maternal-fetal medicine specialist, and (c) planning of safe medication use for acute flare-ups and disease suppression peripartum and postpartum. Keeling SO. (PubMed) Clin Rheumatol. 2008 Nov 6. (Also see: Pregnancy and Autoimmunity) |
| Variation of immunological response in methotrexate-induced pneumonitis (MTX-P). Our findings suggest that MTX-P can be divided into two groups: type 1 MTX-P that occurs early, predominated by neutrophils, lung fibrosis and has a high mortality; and type 2 MTX-P that occurs late, predominated by lymphocytes, has less lung fibrosis and low mortality. B. Chikura. Rheumatology 2008 47(11):1647-1650. (Also see: Immunosuppresants and Pulmonary Involvement) |
| Correlation of a Quantitative Videocapillaroscopic Score with the Development of Digital Skin Ulcers in Scleroderma (SSc) Patients. This capillaroscopic score may represent a feasible and simple tool in SSc patients' assessment. The routinely use of this parameter might permit to recognize and to preventively treat SSc patients at high risk to develop digital ulcers. M. Sebastiani. SAT0222. EULAR 2008. (Also see: Digital Ulcers) |
| Assessment of reproductive history in systemic sclerosis. Compared with the general population, fewer live births were noted in women with SSc, but this phenomenon was only apparent in the period after symptom onset. S. Bernatsky. (PubMed) Arthritis Rheum. 2008 Oct 30;59(11):1661-1664.. (Also see: Scleroderma and Pregnancy) |
| Scleroderma lung disease: evolving understanding in light of newer studies. Treatment benefits consist of the prevention of progression and are largely confined to patients with extensive pulmonary fibrosis. Accurate prognostic evaluation by staging the severity of lung disease remains central to management and will be a major focus of future studies. Antoniou KM. (PudMed) Curr Opin Rheumatol. 2008 Nov;20(6):686-91. (Also see: Pulmonary Fibrosis) |
| Diagnosis, management and prevention of scleroderma renal disease. Renal involvement remains a major complication of scleroderma. Long-term outcome after renal crisis remains poor despite the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors. Penn H. (PubMed) Curr Opin Rheumatol. 2008 Nov;20(6):692-6. (Also see: Kidney Involvement) |
| Antitransforming growth factor (Anti-TGF) -[beta] therapy in fibrosis: recent progress and implications for systemic sclerosis. Anti-TGF-[beta] therapies promise to have a major impact in systemic sclerosis. Significant concerns regarding efficacy and safety need to be addresed. The identification of optimal candidates for therapy, and of biomarkers of safety and efficacy, are critical challenges ahead. J.Varga. Current Opinion in Rheumatology. 20(6):720-728, November 2008. (Also see: Causes of Scleroderma: Proteins) |
| Occupational exposure and systemic sclerosis. Literature review and result of a self-reported questionnaire. Occupational exposure (labour and leisure) must be searched for when faced with a scleroderma patient for two reasons: the possible declaration of an occupational disease and a better knowledge on toxics involved in scleroderma. Granel B (PubMed) Rev Med Interne. 2008 Nov;29(11):891-900. (Also see: Causes of Scleroderma: Silica and Solvents) |
| Elevated Serum Insulin-like Growth Factor (IGF-1) and IGF Binding Protein-3 Levels in Patients with Systemic Sclerosis: Possible Role in Development of Fibrosis. These results suggest that both IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 are involved in the development of SSc. The role of IGF-1 appears to be different from that of IGFBP-3. Y. Hamaguchi. J Rheumatol Nov 1 2008. (Also see: Causes of Scleroderma: Hormones and Skin Fibrosis) |
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