Background and aim: SSc (Systemic sclerosis) is a systemic inflammatory heterogeneous disease, characterized by fibrosis of skin and internal organs particularly the gastrointestinal tract by affecting any part of it. Calprotectin is a calcium- and zinc-binding protein and its level increases during an inflammatory process in the presence of neutrophils, measurable in plasma, urine, saliva, and feces. FC (Fecal calprotectin) is a non-invasive and repeatable marker for the diagnosis of intestinal inflammation and unlike other inflammatory markers, the FC level is not affected by other sources of inflammation other than intestines. The quality of life in SSc patients is severely affected by gastrointestinal disorders. So, we decided to examine FC as a simple and accessible method with no complication to diagnose gastrointestinal disorders and the extent of disease activity.Materials and methods: Totally 46 patients with SSc were invited to include in our study. Seven patients did not enter our study because of having the items in exclusion criteria. For the remaining 39 patients, a questionnaire about gastrointestinal disorders symptoms (UCLA SCTS 2.0) was filled in and then their skin was examined and the skin score was determined. Stool samples were collected to measure the calprotectin level. Barium Swallow and CT Enterography was done to determine gastrointestinal disorders. FC level wasn’t less than 50µgr/gr in any of our cases, therefore the patients was divided into two groups: the one with FC level less than 200 µgr/gr and the one with FC level as 200 µgr/gr or more than 200 µgr/gr and the latter was considered as positive. Chi-Square test was used and to determine the correlation between FC level and age, disease type, qualitative findings in radiography and quantitative variables like skin score.Results: The correlation between FC level and sex was not verifiable cause all patients were female. Increased levels of FC didn’t have any correlation with age (P Value=0.79), disease type (P Value=0.59), skin score (P Value=0.25), final GI score (P Value=0.30), esophageal dilatation (P Value=0.18), small intestine wall thickening (P Value=0.10), and none of serum tests. Also, no signs of micronutrient deficiencies related to FC level was found due to vitamin and mineral supplements consumption in most of our patients.Discussion and Conclusion: Although there was no statistical correlation between FC level and variables, but the results are in favor of FC specificity to assess intestinal wall thickness, which due to the small sample size requires to be assessed in future researchers’ study with a larger sample size.The main cause of the lack of statistical significance in the relationships of our study can be the low sample size. Therefore, it is recommended that in future researchers’ study with a larger sample size.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.