Scleroderma - Thoracic manifestations

This 47 year male patient had cardiomegaly, pericardial effusion, dilated oesophagus and secondary idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Scleroderma is a chronic disease characterized by excessive deposits of collagen in the skin or other organs. The localized type of the disease, while disabling, tends not to be fatal. The systemic type or systemic sclerosis, the generalized type of the disease, can be fatal as a result of heart, kidney, lung or intestinal damage.Some impairment in lung function is almost universally seen in patients with diffuse scleroderma on pulmonary function testing.Scleroderma can decrease motility anywhere in the gastrointestinal tract.[5] The most common source of decreased motility involvement is the esophagus and the lower esophageal sphincter, leading to dysphagia and chest pain.

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