Baseline characteristics of patients.
| Variables | n = 27 |
|---|---|
| Center, Nice/Lille | 18/9 |
| Sex, female/male | 24/3 |
| Age, yrs, median (range) | 59 (38–81) |
| BMI, kg/m2, median (IQR) | 25 (22–28) |
| History of smoking | 9 |
| NYHA score | |
| Class I | 3 |
| Class II | 13 |
| Class III | 8 |
| Class IV | 3 |
| lcSSc/dcSSc | 22/5 |
| Overlap syndromes | 5 |
| Antibodies | |
| Anticentromere | 9 |
| Antitopoisomerase I | 11 |
| Other | 10 |
| Disease ≥ 5 yrs | 16 |
| Modified Rodnan score, median (IQR) | 4.5 (2.0–12) |
| Raynaud phenomenon | 26 |
| Digital ulcers | 14 |
| Telangiectasia | 16 |
| Articular expression of the disease | 6 |
| Gastroesophageal reflux disease | 17 |
| Arterial hypertension | 7 |
| History of SSc renal crisis | 0 |
| Preexisting signs of right heart disease | 3 |
| ECG conduction blocks | 8 |
| Dry cough | 8 |
| Hemoglobin, g/dl (IQR) | 12.40 (12.08–13.73) |
| Creatinine, µmol/l (IQR) | 71 (61–82) |
| BNP < 50 ng/l or NT-proBNP < 300 ng/l | 15 |
| BNP 50–300 ng/l or NT-proBNP 300–1400 ng/l | 8 |
| BNP > 300 ng/l or NT-proBNP > 1400 ng/l | 0 |
BMI: body mass index; IQR: interquartile range; NYHA: New York Heart Association; SSc: systemic sclerosis; lcSSc: limited cutaneous SSc; dcSSc: diffuse cutaneous SSc; BNP: brain natriuretic peptide; ECG: electrocardiograph; NT-proBNP: N terminal proBNP.