Aims: The clinical importance of cold-induced reversible myocardial ischaemia, known as cardiac Raynaud's phenomenon (C-Raynaud), has not been established in systemic sclerosis (SSc). This prospective study investigated the impact of C-Raynaud on long-term irreversible left ventricular (LV) functional and morphologic deterioration in SSc.
Methods and results: Fifty-one SSc patients with no clinical evidence of cardiac involvement were prospectively followed up for 7.1 +/- 2.2 years. Systolic LV dysfunction was defined as a LV ejection fraction <50%. Left ventricular remodelling was defined as an increase in LV volume during follow-up of more than 20% compared with baseline values. At the initial evaluation, C-Raynaud was found in 15 patients (29.4%). Of these, eight patients had severe C-Raynaud. None of the patients had systolic LV dysfunction. At the final evaluation, five patients had developed systolic LV dysfunction. In four of these five patients, the development of systolic LV dysfunction was associated with LV remodelling. At multivariate analysis, severe C-Raynaud was a strong independent determinant of the development of long-term systolic LV dysfunction.
Conclusion: This study documents for the first time that severe C-Raynaud is a strong long-term predictor of systolic LV dysfunction in SSc patients. Detection of C-Raynaud is clinically important for identifying SSc patients at high risk of cardiac deterioration at latent stage.