Correlations Between Clinical Features and Mouth Opening in Patients With Systemic Sclerosis

This study aims to investigate the correlations between clinical features and mouth opening in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc). Eighty patients with SSc (13 males, 67 females; mean age 53.39±11.65 years; range, 31 to 76 years) followed in our clinic were enrolled in the study. Skin involvement was assessed using the modified Rodnan skin score (mRSS), joint/tendon involvement with finger-tip to palm (FTP) distance and interstitial lung disease (ILD) was evaluated with clinical and radiologic methods. The interincisal distance (ID) measurement was used to assess the maximal mouth opening capacity. We examined associations between the ID and clinical features of SSc. The ID was lower in females compared with males, and in diffuse type compared with the limited type (p