Scleroderma is named for its characteristic skin fibrosis, which usually begins in the fingers and progresses up the arms, sometimes within a few weeks, sometimes over years. By the time the arms are affected, so are the legs. During the first stages of skin tightening, occupational and physical therapy are crucial interventions to improve and prevent debilitating, irreversible contractures of the fingers. Skin fibrosis normally worsens during the first 2 to 5 years, and then improves. If this occurs, exercise must be stopped and steroid therapy may be used.
Lung fibrosis is also common.
Fibrosis of the heart can cause abnormalities in the heart rhythm, or heart failure Autoimmune . Autoimmune disease occurs when the immune system, which is geared to attack foreign particles such as viruses and bacteria, attacks the body's own cells. Although both scleroderma and rheumatoid arthritis are autoimmune diseases and may overlap, joint pain in scleroderma, unlike that in rheumatoid arthritis, is thought to result primarily from contraction of the skin, which restricts motion. Exercise is the most important therapy. The cause of scleroderma is not known.