[HLA antigen frequencies in patients with progressive systemic sclerosis and morphea (author's transl)]

Forty three patients with progressive systemic sclerosis and 24 patients with morphea are typed for 30 antigens of the HLA-A and B series. There is an increase of the frequency of HLA-B8 in patients with progressive systemic sclerosis (37% vs. 20% in controls: P less than 0.001, Pcorr. = n.s.). The increase of the HLA-B8 frequency seems to be most pronounced in patients with a diffuse form of progressive systemic sclerosis. 4 out of 5 patients are HLA-B8 positive (P = 0.00672). In patients with acrosclerosis is HLA-B8 only slightly increased (32%), but the increase is greater in male patients (44%) and in patients with an early onset of the disease (36%). With the exception of HLA-A1 there is no deviation of the frequencies of any other HLA antigen tested, especially not of HLA-Aw24. The number of patients with morphea is to small for statistical evaluation.