College of Dentistry

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Digital ulcers associated with scleroderma: a major unmet medical need
(Wound Repair and Regeneration, 2024-09) Naik, Angha; Stratton, Richard; Leask, Andrew
Scleroderma or systemic sclerosis (SSc) associated digital ischemic complications, such as digital ulcers (SSc-DUs), appear relatively early during the disease course and are a major burden with substantial deterioration of quality of life. Expert rheumatologist and wound specialists have defined a DU; however, international application of the definition is still disorganized. Appearance of SSc-DUs is secondary to the onset of Raynaud’s phenomenon (RP) and as a consequence, recommended first-line of treatment mainly includes vasodilators; however, many DUs are refractory to this treatment. Despite important practical issues, such as a lack of well characterized SSc-wound healing animal model, significant efforts are needed to mechanistically understand the pathogenesis of SSc-DUs for developing clinically targetable disease modifying therapies.