J Rheumatol
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We evaluated endothelin (ET)-1 plasma levels and some clinical measures in patients with primary Raynaud's phenomenon (PRP), and in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and secondary RP (SRP), in the latter according to their different nailfold videocapillaroscopy (NVC) patterns of microangiopathy (early, active, and late). ⋯ Highest ET-1 plasma levels were detected in the more advanced stage of the SSc microangiopathy, namely the late NVC pattern, characterized by capillary loss and increased tissue fibrosis; this might support the involvement of ET-1 in the progression of the microvascular/fibrotic SSc damage.
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To compare child self-report and parent/proxy report of health-related quality of life (HRQOL), disability, and fatigue in children with active polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) to that of children with inactive polyarticular JIA and to previous data from healthy controls. ⋯ Although children in this cohort with polyarticular JIA and inactive disease reported HRQOL scores similar to those of healthy controls, children with polyarticular JIA and their parents/proxies tended to report more fatigue than controls, regardless of disease activity. Application of these measures prospectively to larger cohorts of children with JIA is needed to assess these differences.