|
| Fig. 22.6 Typical well-developed lesion of morphea demonstrating an indurated plaque with both lighter areas and brownish discoloration. This lesion was very firm to palpation. (Courtesy of the Fitzsimons Army Medical Center teaching files.) |
Scleroderma is a chronic disease that involves the microvasculature and connective tissue and results in fibrosis. It may be localized, as in morphea, or more generalized and involving visceral organs, as in progressive systemic sclerosis. In morphea, sclerotic, indurated plaques develop that may be solitary, multiple, linear, or generalized. The surface is usually smooth, with the center of the lesion a whitish to brown color (Fig. 22-6), whereas the border of active lesions is often violaceous. Morphea usually involves the skin and subcutaneous tissues but may involve deeper structures, even bone. Patients with morphea generally do not develop systemic sclerosis.
