SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS RELATED CALCINOSIS: PATIENTS PROVIDE WHAT SPECIALISTS WANT TO LEARN

Calcinosis is a disabling, rarely discussed manifestation of systemic sclerosis (SSc) for which the natural history and management is understood poorly.

To develop a calcinosis specific patient reported outcome measure (PROM) that can be used for future clinical research to test the effects of therapy on scleroderma related calcinosis.

Patients were selected for participation by their scleroderma physicians. Four focus groups and individual interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Patients were asked to frame questions to help a physician learn if calcinosis was better, worse or the same. Patient transcripts underwent an iterative inductive process (no preconceived coding, content drives coding and analysis) by at least five independent analysts including at least one research team member with SSc. Concepts were triangulated to identify a comprehensive set of meaningful concepts with occurrence quantified per participant.

Twenty-three patients (22/23 female, 19/23 white, with mean disease duration 14.8 years) consented and were interviewed. Responses included concepts of self-management strategies and recurrent hypotheses relating calcinosis development to trauma, Raynaud's and cold exposure. We identified discrete concepts such as the perceived association between cold exposure, Raynaud's and calcinosis severity. Calcinosis tended to present along with or soon after SSc diagnosis and remained throughout disease duration - though was not yet compared to report of first Raynaud experience.

Patient observations and self-management behavior provide opportunities for experts to learn from and to preemptively educate physicians and patients. Patients are eager for self-management guidance. These concepts are the groundwork for PROM development. However, patients suggested a composite of scales anchored in pain, size, frequency, number and related impairment may reasonably serve as an interim instrument for SSc calcinosis.