Raynaud's Symptoms in Systemic Scerosis Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A re-appraisal of self-report assessment of Raynaud’s phenomenon symptoms in systemic sclerosis
IRAS ID
171415
Contact name
John D Pauling
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Royal United Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Bath
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Raynaud's phenomenon (RP) describes episodic excessive narrowing of the blood vessels of the fingers in response to cold exposure. Due to its episodic nature, a diagnosis of RP is best on patient self-report.
An important cause of RP is systemic sclerosis (SSc); a multisystem disease that is characterised by blood vessel abnormalities (RP), inflammation and scar tissue formation in the skin and other organs. Symptoms of RP form part of the classification criteria for SSc. The Raynaud's Condition Score (RCS) diary is the recommended tool for assessing RP activity in SSc. The RCS diary collects information on the frequency, duration and severity of RP attacks. Blood vessel abnormalities evolve as SSc progresses and patients report difficulty describing their "RP" symptoms as their disease progresses. Additional limitations of the RCS diary include the likely effects of season, coping strategies adopted by patients to avoid RP attacks and other psychosocial factors. It is possible that RP symptoms evolve during the disease course of SSc. The present study is a questionnaire based study designed to better understand the evolution of RP symptoms in SSc and the factors influencing how patients report "RP" symptoms in SSc.
REC name
London - Camden & Kings Cross Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/LO/1521
Date of REC Opinion
26 Aug 2015
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion