Morphea and Hormonal Therapy: A Possible Association

Liliana Saraiva; Gisela  Eugénio; Cátia  Duarte

doi:10.29021/spdv.78.1.1145

Liliana Saraiva Rheumatology Department, Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra. Portugal https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8970-6741
Gisela Eugénio Rheumatology Department, Centro Hospitalar do Baixo Vouga. Portugal https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9366-322X
Cátia Duarte Rheumatology Department, Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra; Coimbra Institute for Clinical and Biomedical Research (iCBR), Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9327-6935

DOI: https://doi.org/10.29021/spdv.78.1.1145

Keywords: Hormones/adverse effects, Hormones/therapeutic use, Infertility/therapy, Scleroderma, Localized/etiology, Scleroderma, Localized/drug therapy

Abstract

Morphea is a rare inflammatory disorder with an unknown etiology. We report the case of a 35-years-old woman presenting with an 18-month history of skin thickening on the extremities and trunk, and inflammatory arthralgia. Complaints started 2-weeks after a fertility treatment. The physical exam and workup confirmed the diagnosis of morphea, and the patient started treatment with deflazacort and methotrexate, with significant improvement. Six years later, the patient was submitted to another fertility treatment with exacerbation of the disease. The temporal association between the fertility treatments and the onset and further worsening of morphea suggest an influence of sex hormones on its pathophysiology.

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