scleroderma

American  

[skleer-uh-dur-muh, skler-] / ˌsklɪər əˈdɜr mə, ˌsklɛr- /

noun

Pathology.

1. a disease in which connective tissue anywhere in the body becomes hardened and rigid.

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scleroderma British  

/ ˌsklɪərəʊˈdɜːmə, ˌsklɪərəʊˈdɜːmɪə /

noun

1. a chronic progressive disease most common among women, characterized by a local or diffuse thickening and hardening of the skin

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scleroderma Scientific  

/ sklîr′ə-dûr′mə /

1. A connective tissue disease characterized by the deposition of fibrous tissue into the skin and often other organs, causing tissue hardening and thickening.

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Etymology

Origin of scleroderma

First recorded in 1865–70; sclero- + -derma

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

scleroderma

To complicate matters, Klee, in 1935, began to suffer from the then‑fatal autoimmune disease scleroderma, which hardens and tightens the skin.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026

Rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and scleroderma are examples of autoimmune disorders marked by lopsided female-to-male ratios.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 1, 2024

She had scleroderma, a cruel autoimmune disease that hardens the skin and internal organs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 9, 2023

Others lost theirs to medical conditions such as sepsis or scleroderma.

From BBC ● Dec. 25, 2022

Although regarded by many as a disease distinct from scleroderma, morphea is best described as a circumscribed scleroderma, and presents itself in two clinical aspects: patches and bands, the patches being the more common.

From Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine by Walter L. (Walter Lytle) Pyle

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