title: Treatment of severe localized scleroderma by plasmapheresis--report of three cases.
abstract: We report three patients with severe, localized scleroderma, and with elevated titres of antinuclear antibodies, who were treated by plasmapheresis in combination with systemic steroid therapy. The therapeutic effectiveness of plasmapheresis was assessed on the basis of improvement in cutaneous and joint lesions. In all cases, significant improvement occurred after 2 months of therapy. Thus, in addition to treating systemic sclerosis, plasmapheresis can also be recommended for treatment of severe cases of localized scleroderma with elevated titres of antinuclear antibodies and antibodies to ss-DNA.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, University of Regensburg, Germany.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Wach
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ullrich
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Schmitz
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Landthaler
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hein
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000974:Antibodies, Antinuclear / Q000097:blood; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010956:Plasmapheresis; D011239:Prednisolone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012594:Scleroderma, Localized / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D000974:Antibodies, Antinuclear; D011239:Prednisolone