Pulmonary haemorrhage and focal necrotizing glomerulonephritis in a case of systemic sclerosis

We report a case of a 53-year-old woman diagnosed of systemic sclerosis. She underwent an episode of pulmonary haemorrhage, characterized by haemoptysis, sudden anaemization, and bilateral alveolar infiltration during her hospitalization, which was resolved with steroid treatment. Subsequently, she developed a focal necrotizing glomerulonephritis. After searching in the literature, we have found only three cases of systemic sclerosis associated with pulmonary haemorrhage. We discuss the etiopathogenesis of this association and stress the importance of early steroid therapy.