Active clinical trials for "Scleroderma, Diffuse"

The aim of the study is to compare the exposure to environmental and professional toxics by patients with systemic scleroderma and by patients not achieved by this pathology.

The goal of this study is to develop a new way to assess skin thickness in patients with scleroderma (systemic sclerosis). The study will test how well a new imaging method called optical coherence elastography (OCE) compares to the current clinical method used to estimate skin thickness, the modified Rodnan Skin Score (mRSS).

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a systemic disease that involves various organs such as the skin, kidneys, gastrointestinal tract and lungs. Dysfunction of the thyroid gland is prevalent in these patients and may be related to thyroid fibrosis or to thyroid autoimmune disease, i.e. hashimoto's thyroiditis. Thyroid nodules are prevalent in the general population, although some reports suggest they might be more frequent in patients with SSc. Hashimoto's thyroiditis, by itself, carries a higher risk for thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer. The aim of the study:To characterize sonographycally the thyroid gland of patients with SSc with and without Hashimoto's disease

The purpose of this trial is to study the proportion of scleroderma patients who suffer from asymptomatic coronary atherosclerosis compared to healthy controls.

Scleroderma is likely caused by a combination of factors, including an external trigger (infection or other exposure) and a genetic predisposition. The Scleroderma Registry will conduct genetic analyses for disease-related genes in patients with scleroderma and their family members (parents, brothers, and sisters).

The purpose of this study is to create and validate an ICF core Set for Systemic sclerosis

Patients with scleroderma can develop heart failure due to high blood pressure in the lungs (a condition called pulmonary arterial hypertension). It is important to find pulmonary arterial hypertension early, so that it can be treated before heart failure develops. However, the tests that we now use to find the earliest form of this disease in scleroderma patients are not good enough. This study will examine whether tests performed during exercise can improve our ability to find early pulmonary arterial hypertension. The study will also try to identify genes that are responsible for the development of pulmonary arterial hypertension.

One of the major problems of systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients is suggested to be articular involvement. Mostly involved joints in SSc were reported as wrist, carpometacarpal-interphalangeal, foot, knee, hip and shoulder however there have been little knowledge on sacroiliac joint. Here the investigators plan a study on the involvement of this joint in SSc.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a condition characterized by an increased pulmonary vascular resistance that can lead to right heart failure and death. Several diseases are known etiologies of PAH including scleroderma and cirrhosis. The presence of PAH in the context of systemic sclerosis or cirrhosis has a dramatic impact on prognosis and survival of the connective tissue or liver disease. Despite advances in the diagnosis of PAH, echocardiography remains a necessary test for screening PAH in patients with scleroderma or cirrhosis. However, echocardiography is less than ideal for diagnosing PAH and predicting treatment response. Thus, there is a pressing need to identify methodologies that can accurately and non-invasively recognize the presence of PAH in patients with scleroderma and cirrhosis. Hypothesis: To measure endothelial function and exhaled gases in patients with scleroderma and cirrhosis. To assess whether they correlate with the presence or the development of PAH. The degree of local (forearm) capillary vasodilation during treprostinil iontophoresis identifies patients who will develop PAH and in those already diagnosed PAH predicts response to PAH-specific therapies.

The public health impact of this study will be the application of the greater understanding of the oral health status, oral health related behaviors, and quality of life of patients with systemic sclerosis (scleroderma or SSc). It is hoped that risks and protective factors can be identified to be associated with the oral health status of adults with systemic sclerosis,leading to the development of interventions for improved oral health in this population,and providing the basis for a larger study of oral health problems of adults with systemic sclerosis.