Esophageal dysmotility associated with systemic sclerosis: a high-resolution manometry study.

Area of Science:

• Gastroenterology
• Rheumatology
• Medical Diagnostics

Background:

• Systemic sclerosis (SSc) commonly affects the esophagus, with up to 80% of patients experiencing diminished peristaltic pressures.
• Esophageal dysmotility in SSc can lead to significant symptoms and complications, impacting patient quality of life.

Purpose of the Study:

• To comprehensively characterize esophageal motility disorders in systemic sclerosis patients using high-resolution manometry (HRM).
• To identify predictive factors associated with esophageal involvement in systemic sclerosis.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 51 systemic sclerosis patients.
• Esophageal motility assessment using high-resolution manometry (HRM).
• Correlation of motility findings with demographic data, esophageal symptoms, organ involvement, and autoantibody profiles (anti-Scl70 [Scl70], anticentromere [ACA]).

Main Results:

• Esophageal body dysmotility was observed in 67.3% of patients, often with a hypotensive esophagogastric junction (55.1%).
• Higher proximal contraction velocity was noted in patients with dysmotility (10.8 cm/s vs. 5.5 cm/s, P=0.04).
• Diffuse skin involvement, Scl70 positivity, and ACA negativity were significantly associated with esophageal involvement, whereas esophageal symptoms were not predictive.

Conclusions:

• High-resolution manometry confirms a high prevalence of esophageal body dysmotility in systemic sclerosis.
• Diffuse skin involvement, Scl70 antibodies, and absence of ACA are significant predictors of esophageal dysmotility in SSc.
• Esophageal symptoms alone are not reliable indicators of esophageal dysmotility in systemic sclerosis patients.