Review
Treatment of early diffuse systemic sclerosis skin disease
T.M. Frech, V.K. Shanmugam, A.A. Shah, S. Assassi, J.K. Gordon, F.N. Hant, M.E. Hinchcliff, V. Steen, D. Khanna, C. Kayser, R.T. Domsic
CER6420
2013 Vol.31, N°2 ,Suppl.76
PI 0166, PF 0171
Review
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PMID: 23910619 [PubMed]
Received: 05/03/2013
Accepted : 06/05/2013
In Press: 23/07/2013
Published: 23/07/2013
Abstract
Diffuse systemic sclerosis carries a high morbidity and mortality. The Prospective Registry of Early Systemic Sclerosis (PRESS), a multicentre incident cohort study of patients with early diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis, has the goal of advancing the understanding of disease pathogenesis and identifying novel biomarkers. In this review, PRESS investigators discuss the evidence pertaining to the more commonly used treatments for early diffuse SSc skin disease including methotrexate, mycophenolate, cyclophosphamide, azathioprine, and intravenous immunoglobulin. This review highlights the unmet need for effective treatment in early diffuse SSc as well as its more rigorous study. Nonetheless, the PRESS investigators aim to decrease intra- and inter-institutional variability in prescribing in order to improve the understanding of the clinical course of early diffuse SSc skin disease.
