Periungual Erythema & Its Translation on Nailfold Videocapillaroscopy in a Patient with Very Early Systemic Sclerosis A 66-year-old woman presented with Raynaud’s phenomenon and periungual erythema. HEp-2 immunofluorescence assay was positive for antinuclear antibodies, showing a centromere pattern. The presence of anti-centromere antibodies was confirmed by chemiluminescent immunoassay. The patient was diagnosed with very early…
Tumoral Calcinosis in Systemic Sclerosis Plain radiograph and computed tomography images depict calcinosis in the region of the right shoulder, left elbow and cervical spine of a 71-year-old woman with a 20-year history of systemic sclerosis. Manifestations include high-titer anti-Scl-70 antibody, diffuse skin involvement, Raynaud’s syndrome, acro-osteolysis, gastroesophageal reflux disease, interstitial lung disease and complete…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Pneumococcal vaccination yields a satisfactory antibody response in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc), but synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) might reduce the vaccine response in these individuals, according to a report from Sweden. The prospective study, published online Jan. 8 in Rheumatology, evaluated the response to either pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) or…
Promising therapeutic targets for rheumatic diseases were the focus of a plenary session here at the ACR/ARHP 2011 Annual Scientific Meeting in November. Presenters discussed discoveries and treatments for systemic sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis, and Behçet’s disease.