title: Intracerebral calcification in systemic sclerosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Advanced cerebrovascular wall calcification was recently observed at autopsy in 2 patients with systemic sclerosis. To further investigate this issue, we conducted a prospective CT study of scleroderma patients to detect intracerebral calcification.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-seven consecutive patients with systemic sclerosis underwent unenhanced brain CT. Images were blindly interpreted, together with those of 2 age-matched (+/-1 year) and sex-matched control subjects per patient.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Intracerebral calcification was found in 12 patients (32.4%) and 7 controls (9.5%) (P=0.006). Among the patients, intracerebral calcification was associated with the duration of Raynaud's phenomenon (P=0.005) and not with age (P=0.086).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Intracerebral calcification is closely associated with scleroderma, which suggests that scleroderma causes primary cerebrovascular changes.
authors.affiliation: Service de Médecine Vasculaire and Centre Claude Bernard de Recherche sur les Maladies Vasculaires Périphériques, Paris Cedex, France. emmanuel.heron@brs.ap-hop-paris.fr
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Heron
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hernigou
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chatellier
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Fornes
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Emmerich
authors.forename: J N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Fiessinger
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D002114:Calcinosis; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012595:Scleroderma, Systemic / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed