Renal vascular histology and morphometry in systemic sclerosis. a case–control autopsy study

✍ Scribed by David C. Trostle; Carlos D. Bedetti; Virginia D. Steen; M. Radwan Al-Sabbagh; Benny Zee; Thomas A. Medsger Jr

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1988
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 869 KB
• Volume: 31
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0004-3591
• DOI: 10.1002/art.1780310311

✦ Synopsis

An autopsy case-control study of renal vascular histology and morphometry in systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) was performed. Thirty-five of 70 systemic sclerosis cases had renal tissue available for study: 26 had diffuse cutaneous involvement (9 with "renal crisis" and 17 without) and 9 had limited cutaneous disease (CREST syndrome [calcinosis, Raynaud's phenomenon, esophageal dysmotility, sclerodactyly, telangiectasias]).

Age-matched (within 10 years) and sex-matched controls with renal specimens were obtained. New sections were cut from tissue blocks, and morphometry was completed using a Zeiss Image Analyzer. Using analysis of variance, the intimal area (Ai) was significantly increased (intimal thickening) in small and mediumsized arteries of patients with diffuse scleroderma and in small arteries of CREST patients, compared with those in controls, while a decreased medial area (Am) was seen consistently in all groups. The proportion of the vessel wall occupied by intima (Ai:[Ai + Am]) was significantly greater in all vessel size groups in patients with diffuse scleroderma compared with that in con-From the