[Cerebral vascular pathology in systemic sclerosis]

Thirty patients with systemic sclerosis (SS), aged 20-55 years, illness duration 1-10 years, were observed. Vasospastic syndrome of different expression predominated in the clinical picture of the disease. Among neurological signs, prevalent were peripheral nervous system lesion--isolated (20% of the cases) or in combination with chronic insufficiency of brain circulation (80%). Vascular pathology was distinctly determined by ophthalmoscopy: angiopathy was found in 42% of the patients, angiospasm--in 25%, angiosclerosis--in 17%. The following types of disorders characterized brain blood flow: distonic (42%), dyscirculatory (33%), normotonic (17%), hypotonic (8%). Besides, 83% of the patients had hemispheric asymmetry of blood flow and difficulties with venous outflow. In some cases, the signs of inner, external and combined hydrocephalia were determined by CT and MRI; more than a half of the patients had dilatation or deformation of brain ventricular system with intracranial hypertension. The data obtained suggest that extra- and intracranial blood flow pathology in SS may, to a large extent, determine both organic brain lesion development in general and the genesis of many symptoms (headaches, vestibular disorders, etc).

PMID: 15270295 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]