Further observations on nasal mucosal changes in scleroderma. A histochemical and electron microscopic study

The respiratory nasal mucosa of patients with scleroderma showed several ultrastructural and histochemical changes. These included initial goblet cell hyperplasia, loss of cilia and microvilli, exfoliation of the superficial epithelial layers, increased glandular activity in cases with squamous metaplasia and fibrous tissue deposition in the lamina propria. These changes seem to be related to the duration of the disease, whose nature and pathogenesis are still uncertain.