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. 2020 Oct;8(10):2252.
doi: 10.18103/mra.v8i10.2252. Epub 2020 Oct 29.

Clinical Assessment of Gastrointestinal Involvement in Patients with Systemic Sclerosis

Timothy Kaniecki  1 , Tsion Abdi  2 , Zsuzsanna H McMahan  3
Affiliations

Clinical Assessment of Gastrointestinal Involvement in Patients with Systemic Sclerosis

Timothy Kaniecki et al. Med Res Arch. 2020 Oct.

Abstract

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) has the potential to affect any component of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. GI involvement in SSc is a leading cause of morbidity and overall decreased quality of life in this patient population, identifying a need for a concise approach to work-up. This literature review aims to present a systematic, anatomical approach and differential diagnosis of GI involvement in SSc for the general internist and rheumatologist. Each component of the luminal GI tract has its own specified section, beginning with a review of a clinical approach to diagnosis that includes a differential for clinicians to consider, followed by a discussion of the literature surrounding objective evaluation of these conditions (i.e. serologic studies, imaging, endoscopy). Additionally there is a focused discussion on an approach to GI bleeding in the patient with SSc.

Keywords: clinical; gastrointestinal; scleroderma; systemic sclerosis.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest statement: None of the authors received any financial support or other benefits from commercial sources for the work reported in this manuscript, nor do any of the authors have any financial interests, which could create a potential conflict of interest or appearance thereof.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Differential for GI manifestations of SSc
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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