Table 1.
Patient demographics and clinical characteristics.
| Variables | SSc (n = 32) | HD (n = 14) |
|---|---|---|
| Age at serum sampling (years) * | 55 ± 11 | 54.1 ± 10.4 |
| Sex | ||
| Female | 24 (75) | 12 (86) |
| Male | 8 (25) | 2 (14) |
| Race | ||
| White | 30 (94) | 11 (79) |
| Black | 2 (6) | 3 (21) |
| Smoking status | ||
| Never | 14 (44) | 10 (71) |
| Current | 10 (31) | 4 (29) |
| Past | 8 (25) | 0 |
| SSc types | ||
| Diffuse | 22 (69) | |
| Limited | 10 (31) | |
| SSc duration (years) * | 13 ± 12.3 | |
| Autoantibody status | ||
| Anti RNA polymerase 3 | 4 (6) | |
| Anti Scl-70 | 20 (63) | |
| Anti ACA | 4 (13) | |
| Medication use (current) | ||
| Immunosuppressants ‡ | 4 (13) | |
| Calcium channel blocker | 16 (50) | |
| Endothelin receptor antagonist | 4 (13) | |
| Phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitor | 2 (13) | |
| Prostanoid | 20 (63) | |
| Statin | 2 (6) | |
| Aspirin | 8 (25) |
All values are given as number (%) unless otherwise specified. * Mean ± SD. SSc, systemic sclerosis; HD, healthy donors; ACA, anticentromere antibody; Scl-70, topoisomerase I; ‡ Use of immunosuppressants include cyclophosphamide, mycophenolate, methotrexate, hydroxycholorquine, or prednisone.