Scleroderma is a long term autoimmune disease which is a chronic hardening and tightening of the skin and the connective tissues that affects eyes and other organs. This is a disease that can have devastating and lasting impacts on families and patients due to its uncommon effects. Scleroderma is not contagious, infectious, or cancerous. Scleroderma is classified as an autoimmune disease, which means that a person’s immune system works against itself. “The normal immune system protects the body by fighting off foreign invaders such as viruses and infections. In an autoimmune disease, the immune system mistakes a person’s own tissues as foreign invaders and set up a protective attack that backfires to cause problems”. In early 2009, my grandmother life as well as my life has changed forever when she was diagnosed with this Disease. It caused many changes in her, physically and mentally.
Scleroderma symptoms include joint pain, skin rashes, swollen blood vessels in the skin or ulcers. Common symptoms of this autoimmune disease are acid reflux, chronic cough, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth, fatigue, headache, joint stiffness, Raynaud’s syndrome, sensitivity to cold, shortness of breath, tight and hardened fingers, and weight loss. There are a few symptoms you could look for things like swelling of hands, feet, and other areas. A lot of a place that does not contain a lot of fat or have very few organs in that area. Once the blood flow is off, it is harder for it to reach these places which causes them to work harder than normal which causes things to swell more and more over time. Weight lost which is very common. “Heart burn, red spots on your chest and/or face which is telangiectasia, a red blood vessel. Heartburn, shortening of breath, diarrhea especially when dealing with Limited cutaneous systemic Sclerosis. Scleroderma is diagnosed through four different ways which is a person’s medical exam, a physical exam, lab tests, and a skin biopsy. My grandmother found out she was diagnosed with Scleroderma a year before she passed away. One day as my mother, sister and I was out at the grocery store we spoke amongst one another and shared different opinions based on my grandmother’s behavior and her illness so we then decided to take her to the hospital that week. We took her to the emergency room where they decided to then admit her. What was supposed to be a day or two turned into a couple of weeks. The day before my grandmother was scheduled to come home, my mother and I went to go visit her to keep her company for the day. Later that night, my grandmother had a heart attack which was the main cause of her passing. The doctors resuscitated my grandmother but her body was so weak from having the autoimmune disease that her body gave out on her. Even though she did not pass specifically from the disease per say, my family and I along with the doctors feel that Scleroderma had a lot to do with it. My grandmother symptoms included fatigue, stress, weight loss and she was too sick to function that it sent her places she may not been able to handle physically. I feel that it is important to inform others on this disease because a lot of people have no idea what it is or how it can affect a person. There could be times where you notice others staring or trying to figure out why a person looks a certain type of way, why their skin look so …show more content…
Scleroderma is an ongoing research and scientists are still trying to find a cure for this autoimmune disease along with where it stems from. There are a few treatments that patients can receive to have it reduce any immediate pain. There are treatments for the bowel, to redirect the flow of blood, and to slow down the process of hardening the skin (Once it start it cannot be stopped). “Exercise may help improve your overall health” rendering to WebMD/scleroderma.com. Some doctors treat patients on the specific problem; physical therapy, ibuprofen, steroids, referring them to a dermatologist. Unlike other illnesses with once cure or one medication to fix the issue, scleroderma have many different solutions to
Scleroderma symptoms include joint pain, skin rashes, swollen blood vessels in the skin or ulcers. Common symptoms of this autoimmune disease are acid reflux, chronic cough, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth, fatigue, headache, joint stiffness, Raynaud’s syndrome, sensitivity to cold, shortness of breath, tight and hardened fingers, and weight loss. There are a few symptoms you could look for things like swelling of hands, feet, and other areas. A lot of a place that does not contain a lot of fat or have very few organs in that area. Once the blood flow is off, it is harder for it to reach these places which causes them to work harder than normal which causes things to swell more and more over time. Weight lost which is very common. “Heart burn, red spots on your chest and/or face which is telangiectasia, a red blood vessel. Heartburn, shortening of breath, diarrhea especially when dealing with Limited cutaneous systemic Sclerosis. Scleroderma is diagnosed through four different ways which is a person’s medical exam, a physical exam, lab tests, and a skin biopsy. My grandmother found out she was diagnosed with Scleroderma a year before she passed away. One day as my mother, sister and I was out at the grocery store we spoke amongst one another and shared different opinions based on my grandmother’s behavior and her illness so we then decided to take her to the hospital that week. We took her to the emergency room where they decided to then admit her. What was supposed to be a day or two turned into a couple of weeks. The day before my grandmother was scheduled to come home, my mother and I went to go visit her to keep her company for the day. Later that night, my grandmother had a heart attack which was the main cause of her passing. The doctors resuscitated my grandmother but her body was so weak from having the autoimmune disease that her body gave out on her. Even though she did not pass specifically from the disease per say, my family and I along with the doctors feel that Scleroderma had a lot to do with it. My grandmother symptoms included fatigue, stress, weight loss and she was too sick to function that it sent her places she may not been able to handle physically. I feel that it is important to inform others on this disease because a lot of people have no idea what it is or how it can affect a person. There could be times where you notice others staring or trying to figure out why a person looks a certain type of way, why their skin look so …show more content…
Scleroderma is an ongoing research and scientists are still trying to find a cure for this autoimmune disease along with where it stems from. There are a few treatments that patients can receive to have it reduce any immediate pain. There are treatments for the bowel, to redirect the flow of blood, and to slow down the process of hardening the skin (Once it start it cannot be stopped). “Exercise may help improve your overall health” rendering to WebMD/scleroderma.com. Some doctors treat patients on the specific problem; physical therapy, ibuprofen, steroids, referring them to a dermatologist. Unlike other illnesses with once cure or one medication to fix the issue, scleroderma have many different solutions to