ARTHRITIS IN SCLERODERMA

Thirty-four patients (24 females and 10 males) selected from 300 conse cutive patients with established systemic sclerosis (SSc), with a curr ent or past history of articular symptoms, were clinically documented and further studied using thermography and bone scan to define the pat tern of arthritis. Clinical evidence of synovitis was observed in 30 ( 88%) and joint inflammation was detected in 31 (91%) by the above-ment ioned imaging techniques. A distinctive subset of 10 patients with def orming arthritis was characterized in which seven (70%) patients fulfi lled criteria for both rheumatoid arthritis and SSC; three of these sa tisfied the criteria for diagnosis of CREST, but none met the criteria of mixed connective tissue disease. These patients, as a group, when compared with the rest showed limited skin involvement (skin score of 19 +/- ii vs 33 +/- 14; P < 0.05) and were positive for rheumatoid fac tor (80 as 13%; P < 0.05) and anticentromere antibodies (37 vs 4%; P < 0.05).