Early trajectories of skin thickening are associated with severity and mortality in systemic sclerosis.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a severe and highly heterogeneous disease. The modified Rodnan skin score (mRSS) is a widely used tool for the assessment of the extent and degree of skin thickness. This study aimed to identify the classes of patients with early similar skin thickening trajectories without any a priori assumptions and study their associations with organ involvement and survival. METHODS:From the French SSc national cohort, patients with a disease duration of less than 2 years at inclusion and with at least 2 mRSS available within the first 4 years of follow-up were enrolled. Classes of patients with similar mRSS trajectories were identified based on a latent class mixed model. The clinical characteristics and survival rate were compared between the obtained classes.

SUBMITTER: Ledoult E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7029583 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature