Causes

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The exact cause of scleroderma is not known, but there are theories related to the immune system and to the vascular system.

Changes in the body's immune system cause the immune cells to react to the body. This autoimmune reaction causes the stimulation of fibroblast cells (cells that make up collagen and other connective tissues). The result is the excessive collection of collagen and other connective tissue components in various parts of the body such as the skin, lungs and walls of the arteries. This overproduction of collagen causes the thickening and hardening of the skin and other organs.

Another theory has to do with the vascular system. It is suspected that something triggers injury to the cells that line the small arteries. Such injury to the blood vessels may cause them to constrict and stiffen, resulting in overreaction to cold and/or stress. As a consequence there may be damage to the vessels themselves and possibly to organs.

Another study in the causes of scleroderma is investigating an infectious component with a virus-like organism acting as a trigger. There are also studies into possible environmental impacts, suggesting that there may be a genetic predisposition to the disease with an environmental trigger.

  While the cause of scleroderma is not known it is believed that scleroderma is neither contagious, nor inherited.