Is scleroderma Morphea an autoimmune disease?

Morphea is an autoimmune disease that causes sclerosis, or scarlike, changes to the skin. Autoimmune diseases occur when the immune system, which normally protects us from bacteria, viruses, and fungi, mistakenly attacks a person’s own body.

What autoimmune diseases are associated with scleroderma?

Immune system problems. People who have scleroderma may also have symptoms of another autoimmune disease — such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus or Sjogren’s syndrome.

Is diffuse scleroderma always fatal?

It is the most fatal of all the rheumatologic diseases. Systemic scleroderma is very unpredictable although most cases can be classified into one of four different general patterns of disease (see Classification).

What triggers morphea?

Morphea may be triggered by radiation therapy, repeated trauma to your skin, environmental exposure, or an infection. Morphea isn’t contagious, so you can’t get it from or spread it by touching someone else.

What is morphea scleroderma?

Morphea is a skin condition that causes patches of reddish skin that thicken into firm, oval-shaped areas. It is a form of scleroderma. Patches most often occur on the abdomen, stomach, and back, and sometimes on the face, arms and legs.

How quickly does morphea spread?

Without treatment, the lesions often go away on their own within three to five years, but new lesions usually appear over a person’s lifetime. If the condition goes deeper than skin level, it may spread quickly, so early diagnosis and prompt treatment are important. Find out more morphea facts here.

Can morphea turn into scleroderma?

Morphea is sometimes referred to as “localized scleroderma”. However, despite their similar names, patients with morphea are not at increased risk of developing internal organ scleroderma involvement (systemic sclerosis). In morphea, the immune system mistakenly causes inflammation of the skin.

How rare is morphea scleroderma?

Morphea scleroderma is a rare skin disease thought to affect approximately 3 out of every 100,000 individuals.

How rare is Morphea scleroderma?

What is the difference between scleroderma and morphea?

Scleroderma is a disease of unknown origin that affects the microvasculature and loose connective tissues of the body and is characterized by fibrosis and obliteration of vessels in the skin, lungs, gut, kidneys and heart. Morphea is a localized form of scleroderma and affects primarily just the skin.

Is morphea the same as scleroderma?

In children, the linear subtype predominates while in adults’ plaque and generalized subtypes are most common. Morphea occurs more frequently in women, especially in adults where female predominance is marked (5:1). Morphea is not the same as scleroderma (systemic sclerosis), and it does not become scleroderma.

Is Morphea an autoimmune disease?

(In this retrospective review of 245 patients with morphea it was noted that high prevalences of concomitant and familial autoimmune disease, systemic manifestations, and antinuclear antibody positivity in the generalized and possibly mixed subtypes suggest that these are systemic autoimmune syndromes and not skin-only phenomena.

Can bosentan be used to treat pansclerotic morphea?

The also acknoledge that previous results, using methotrexate and phototherapy, have beenconfirmed. A successful use of bosentan, an endothelin receptor antagonist with vasodilatative and antifibrotic properties for refractory cutaneous ulcerations in pansclerotic morphea, opens new horizons of treatment.)

Which medications are used in the treatment of morphea?

Methotrexate (MTX) is one of the best systemic treatment options for morphea. Oral or intravenous (IV) glucocorticoids may be used along with methotrexate in rapidly progressive or inflammatory disease. Of note, optimum regimen for the use of methotrexate and/or glucocorticoids has not been established.