Active clinical trials for "Scleroderma, Systemic"

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by early vascular endothelial involvement. SSc is a rare and devastating multi-visceral disease when fibrotic lesions extend to the skin and other tissues (heart, lungs, kidneys). The severity of skin involvement in SSc is correlated with functional prognosis and survival. To date, there is no validated tool for a reliable quantitative assessment of skin fibrosis. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an innovative non-invasive skin imaging technique that allows micrometric analysis of the superficial layers of the skin. Previous study showed that OCT could detect the loss of the dermal-epidermal junction in an objective and non-invasive way, which is correlated with severity of skin fibrosis. The aim of OCTISS study is to evaluate the skin involvement of patients with early SSc using OCT imaging. This will be early diagnosis of fibrosis lesions and help identify patients at an early stage.

As fibrosis of salivary glands is supposed to be the main mechanism involved in Systemic sclerosis (SSc)-associated sicca syndrome, Ultrasonography , biopsy and measuring gland elasticity (by ARFI (Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse)) in SSc patients could also constitute a relevant method to assess the potential alterations of echostructure of major salivary glands and the fibrosis of Salivary Glands in this disease.

Systemic sclerosis (scleroderma; SSc) is a connective tissue disease characterized by a progressive fibrosis of the skin and visceral organs. A diffuse cutaneous microvascular damage occurs in 30-50% of patients, often leading to digital ulcers development, responsible for pain, functional disability, disfiguring scars, digital bony reabsorption, infection and osteomyelitis. Although the availability of drugs as i.v. prostacyclin analogs, oral vasodilating agents, oral phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors, oral endothelin receptor blockers has improved the prognosis, digital ulcers are frequently refractory to the medical treatment. Preliminary data seems to demonstrate a pivotal role played by some growth factors (PDGF, TGF beta 1-2, IGF) in the process of ulcers healing: tissue regeneration and re-epithelization. Alpha-granules in the platelets store these factors in significant amount. Recently, the application of a gel rich in platelets, prepared from donors' plasma taken by apheresis, seems to be beneficial to enhance pressure and vascular ulcers healing. On the basis of these considerations we expect that application of a platelet gel, combined with advanced dressing and conventional medical therapy, makes a more rapid healing of digital ulcers in patients with systemic sclerosis. We decided to conduct a double blind RCT to test this hypothesis

Dyspnea in systemic sclerosis (ScS) constitute a major factor of functional disability. Intensity of dyspnea is sometimes discordant with objectives data from cardiopulmonary involvements, suggesting unknown additional factors. Diffuse fibrosing myopathy of bad prognosis have been reported in ScS.To now, muscular respiratory involvement has not been evaluated in ScS. Therefore, ScS patients (with or without dyspnea) could have underlying respiratory muscular involvement not detected by current standard of care with pulmonary function tests (PFT). This project is the first, to the best of our knowledge, to assess frequency of respiratory muscular involvement in ScS and to evaluate a screening strategy of this involvement.

This is a randomized controlled trial with blinded evaluator and follow-up of one year. Seventy six patients with diffuse systemic sclerosis, will be randomized into two groups.The patients can not change their medication during the study. Patients will be evaluated at baseline and at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. The experimental group will use a serial night time position splint who will be adjusted monthly, while the control group will remain the drug treatment. The outcomes assessed will be: pain, hand range of motion, quality of life, functional capacity, upper limb function and dexterity. Our hypothesis is that the serial night time position splint will improve the hand range of motion in diffuse systemic sclerosis patients.

The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the relative intraoperative improvement in perfusion between arterial reconstruction and sympathectomies with quantitative ICG. A minimum of 40 patients, 20 Sympathectomy Prior to Bypass (group 1) and 20 Bypass Prior to Sympathectomy (group 2), will be recruited for this study. This study will enroll participants in a one to one randomized study design. There is the potential risk of loss of confidentiality. The study involves the intraoperative assessment of perfusion by quantitative ICG. ICG is FDA approved for this usage and will be used according to its labeling. Assessment involves intraoperative quantitative ICG data, questionnaires, and patient and physician assessments. There are no additional physical risks associated with participating in this study over and above that of the planned arterial reconstruction (bypass) and sympathectomies.The information collected will be kept confidential and will comply with the HIPAA.

The researchers seek to understand if the Resilience-based, Energy Management to Enhance Wellbeing and Fatigue (RENEW) program helps with scleroderma symptom management and disease burden. The researchers think that those participants who receive the intervention will have clinically meaningful changes of symptom management and disease burden.

The purpose of this study is the validation of a newly developed self-report questionnaire which aims at determining the prevalence, location and intensity of SWAllowing difficulties with drug intake, and describing the impact on MEdication regimen focusing on COping strategies (SWAMECO).

The aim of our study is to find a biomarker for fibrosis or vasculopathy in systemic sclerosis. We will evaluate a possible correlation between semaphorin 7a, semaphorin 3a and lysyl oxidase and fibrosis (lung and skin) or vasculopathy in patients with systemic sclerosis. The results obtained may help us diagnose these complications of systemic sclerosis and hopefully even monitor patient treatment.

To explore the hypothesis that leg ulcers are associated with hypercoagulable states, the CLUE study will evaluate patients with connective tissue disease associated leg ulcers, to identify risk factors (especially hypercoagulability and immunologic characteristics), characterize pathogenesis, predict response to therapy, and assess the impact of lower extremity ulcers on quality of life.