Systemic sclerosis & Raynaud's
The clinical utility of telangiectasia quantification as markers of vascular disease progression in systemic sclerosis
Authors' conclusion
The number of telangiectasia might be considered a complementary biomarker to the presence of vascular complications of SSc including PAH, DU and calcinosis.
Study context
- Population
- Patients with SSc in a large, cross-sectional international SSc-related vasculopathy study; clinician and patient telangiectasia counts (0, 1–6, 7–15 or >15) in face, forearms and hands
- Outcome
- Telangiectasia count vs vascular complications
Methodological detailsinternational, proportional odds logistic regression, binary logistic regression
- International
- Proportional odds logistic regression
- Binary logistic regression
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
- Higher face and hand telangiectasia counts associated with higher prevalence of calcinosis, digital ulceration (DU) and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) (univariate)
- P < 0.001-0.003
- PAH, DU and calcinosis associated with higher facial telangiectasia (multivariate)
- P < 0.05
- PAH detection model enhanced by telangiectasia count and site: area under the precision recall curve
- 0.824-0.875
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Agreement between clinician- and patient-reported telangiectasia counts
- Face, kappa (moderate)
- 0.648
- Forearms, kappa (moderate)
- 0.605
- Hands, kappa (relatively weaker)
- 0.584
- P < 0.001 for each
Original publication
The clinical utility of telangiectasia quantification as markers of vascular disease progression in systemic sclerosis. Rheumatology (Oxford). Published 22 May 2026. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →