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Updated: Oct 14, 2025

Imaging Features of Systemic Sclerosis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease
Published on: June 16, 2020
ENDOTHELIAL DYSFUNCTION AND PATHOGENETIC PHENOTYPES OF LOCALIZED SCLERODERMA
1National Pirogov Memorial Medical University, Department of Skin and Venereal Diseases, Vinnytsia, Ukraine.
Abstract:
There are several pathogenetic models of localized scleroderma. At the same time, studies examining the role of endothelin-1, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF-A) and cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM) are limited. Objectives - to learn the nature of disorders of vascular, proliferative, adhesive functions of the endothelium on the content of endothelin-1, VEGF-A and VCAM-1 in localized scleroderma. The study included 78 patients with localized scleroderma and 35 healthy individuals (mean age - 44.2±17.6 years, 73 women (64.6%), 40 men (35.4%). All patients underwent clinical, laboratory, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay examination (endothelin-1, VEGF-A, VCAM-1). In the local form of scleroderma, there are the number of disorders of vascular, proliferative and adhesive functions of the endothelium, with an increase in endothelin-1 (p<0.05), VEGF-A (p<0.05) and VCAM-1 (p<0.05) content. In idiopathic atrophodermia, the level of endothelin-1 was probably higher (p<0.05). The vasospastic type of pathogenesis of localized scleroderma was established in patients under 20 years of age (p<0.05) and in patients older than 70 years (p<0.05). U-shaped age dependence of pathogenesis was noted: high content of VEGF-A in patients under 20 years of age (p<0.05) and after 35 years (p<0.05). Higher levels of VCAM-1 were found in women compared to men (p<0.05). The analysis of the age dependence of the content revealed a U-shaped dependence of VCAM-1 - the highest content in patients under 20 years (p<0.05) and in patients 55-70 years (p<0.05). The level of biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction in patients with localized scleroderma - endothelin-1, VEGF and VCAM is associated with different phenotypes of the disease course - vasospastic, proliferative or adhesive.
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