Systemic disorder of the connective tissue; manifested by hardening and thickening of the skin, by abnormalities involving the microvasculature and larger vessels, and by fibrotic degenerative changes in various body organs including the heart, lungs, kidneys, and gastrointestinal tract.

Systemic scleroderma, or systemic sclerosis, is an autoimmune rheumatic disease characterised by excessive production and accumulation of collagen, called fibrosis, in the skin and internal organs and by injuries to small arteries. There are two major subgroups of systemic sclerosis based on the extent of skin involvement: limited and diffuse...