Scleroderma Symptoms

The term Scleroderma indicates “hardening of the skin” and refers to a possible physical effect of the disease. If it occurs throughout the body, it is known as progressive systemic sclerosis. Around 300,000 people have scleroderma in the United States alone. Studies have shown that women tend to be the more affected at a ratio of around 3:1 when compared to men. While the disease can develop at any age, it most frequently appears around the third to fifth decades of a person’s life. It is also very often a chronic and progressive illness. When a person suffers from scleroderma, collagen, which is a protein manufactured by the connective tissues within the body, is produced in excess. The abnormal production of the protein causes it to be deposited in various organs or tissues of the body or both, especially in layers of skin.
One must point out that the symptoms of scleroderma vary from person to person, and it may appear that each individual has his or her own version of the disease. Even though it can turn out to be quite a serious condition, most people are able to live a normal life with varying degrees of comfort or disability.
The two forms of scleroderma are: localized and generalized. Localized scleroderma mostly affects the skin in different areas of the body. It may also affect the muscles and bones but does not affect the organs and is usually not as severe as generalized scleroderma. It rarely develops into generalized scleroderma. Generalized scleroderma can affect the skin as well as internal body parts including blood vessels, the digestive system, heart, lung, kidneys muscles and joints. Scleroderma in the skin might cause a pause of hair growth and sweat, the tightening and thinning of skin over the finger joints and knuckles. Scleroderma of the joints could case arthritic symptoms like inflammation, swelling, pain, redness, stiffness and joint deformity. In addition to this, the condition could have varying effects on the kidney, gastrointestinal tract, the lungs, the heart and the kidney.

Here are a few symptoms that could help identify scleroderma:

• Gradual hardening and thickening of the skin
• Discoloration of the skin
• Shiny skin
• Pain and stiffness of the joints
• Hands and feet swelling up
• Itchy Skin
• Curling up and stiffening of the fingers
• Arthritis
• Loss of hair
• Weight loss
• Weakness and fatigue
• Ulcers noticed on the outsides of joints, most often knuckles and elbows.