Sjogrens Causing Brittle Nails

Sounds like the beginning of calcinosis. Are you familiar with that? Stay vigilant and seek care if any of those bubbles begin to turn red or become sores. Ulceration in the fingertips goes with several autoimmune conditions. I have topical medication and ointment that I apply each day. My hands and fingers itch and burn like crazy and I get the bubbles on my joints. Hard not to scratch. Think mine is still in the eczema category. My Derm watches it closely though. The pain in the end of your fingers is an important sign. Stay on top of it.

Thanks Coegirl - I'm actually going to be tested using nailfold capilliary test next month by a Scleroderma doctor. But I do also have some mild Pompholyx at the base of one finger going onto my palm so it would seem rather coincidental to have both? I studied/ googled images last night and found a few of Pompholyx on finger tips although GP was fairly adamant that it doesn't cause pain or affect finger tips in this way. He thinks I do have both so perhaps it's just a case of wishful thinking on my part that he's wrong.

I am watching closely and the weather is suddenly much milder here now too. No ulceration so far - just more bubbles keep appearing while others turn dry, surrounding skin shiny, leaving scarring - no flaky skin though which is a bit different to my Pompholyx too.

The thing that other GP reasssured me

with is that there's no fibrous tissue underneath as he feels there would be with Scleroderma. If anything I have pitting oedema in my finger pads and soles of feet and toes (which also get very affected by Raynauds).

Ps Cowgirl - sorry - blame sore fingertips!

Yes but do also have b12 checked. If it is too low needs to be addressed.

You might also get your vitamin D checked as some of us have systems that make zero use of D unless it comes from the sun or is micellized.

Hi Mikki, I hope you still follow this forum and are doing well. You mentioned the vitamins are you taking, can you tell me which brand(s) you use? I was taking B Complex gummies, but can no longer find them, so switched to just the B-12,  also take Vit D, but would like to try your suggestions. I have recently been applying Argan Oil to my fingernails (only my thumbs nails are affected) but it has helped tremendously, I noticed a big, big transformation overnight, after the first use. 

All of which is why it's always best to take one's own utensils (and polish if it's not a shop with little customers bottles) in a bag & insist that manicures sanitize her hands & then use your equipment on your hands ,,, regardless of whether one has SS :-)

For sure!!  I agree!!  But, I am still very picky!!!!

 

Maureen have you ever had a nailfold capileroscopy done to see if your Raynauds is secondary to Sjögren's and rule out that you have Scleroderma as well as Sjögren's I wonder? I have this horrible pain in the edges of my nails too and also in the tips - which have sort of browni-ish halos.

Hello Tumtum.  I don't have Scleroderma, just the Raynaud's which has always been presumed to be secondary to Sjogren's.  Although the Sjogren's has progressed inexorably through the years, the Raynaud's seemed to be static for some decades but it has worsened considerably over the past few years.  I saw you describe your Raynaud's, on another discussion this morning, as bad. Are you on any medication for this?  I have resisted medication up to the present (on so many other drugs) but am having so much difficulty now that I think I have to try something.

Hi Maureen, I should say that I've always thought my Raynauds was mild because I only get white toes abd red finger tips. But the small fibre neuropathy was a big issue for me everywhere.

However this winter I've started to believe that these are one and the same and that this is now showing as erythromelgia in my fingertips - which seem to go from being hot and crmson to being like white patches of memory foam according to how warm or cold my hands get. They go wrinkled and shiny like prunes they swell but always they have these red marbling spots under the skin now that are joining up around my palm and appear to be tiny broken blood vessels.

The pain in my tips makes it hard to type but the burning makes other things hard, basic chores and touching warm or hot things. So both hot and cold extremes and surface abd colour changes makes me think I have both Raynauds and Erythromelagia going on simultaneously in my hands. Bizarre and very tricky to manage -especially as I'm an artist.

I'm having a nailfold capilliary test next month to hopefully rule out Scleroderma. It could well be secondary to Sjögren's but mine is lip biopsy positive so I'm not quite certain as they are that it's my primary disease. I was previously misdiagnosed and treated aggressively for RA and that makes me wonder if I had Scleroderma all along and the Methotrexate and others knocked it on the head for a while?

My nucleolar +ANA pattern points to Scleroderma but I don't have the more specific pattern for this or for Sjögren's. Hope this explains. I did try Nifedipine but it made me swell so much I got a nasty follicular infection. Now on Losartan which should help my Raynauds but doesn't seem to much!

My doc is very vigilant about my nails. I have overlap so they are watching for Scleroderma. All I know is that my hands and nail beds itch constantly even with the medicine. I get small bubbles under skin but I think it is eczema. We will see.

Yes I think mine is Pompholyx eczema too but my gp was adamant that it was connective tissue/ Raynauds related. Maybe the eczema is a sign of underlying Scleroderma because it's our skin's way of showing weakness or default position?

Hello Tumtum.  I have not forgotten your message and always intended to reply to you but life has been an endless struggle over the past couple of months so forgive the long delay.  Thank you for the information about the Raynaud's medication.  Our winter is just about to start (Australia); I will see how I go before trying something.  About the Erythromelagia: I used to get this also, in the early years after the Raynaud's started.  The latter started in 1981 and I can remember being at school (was mainly a Biology/Science teacher but was taking typing classes also at this time) and wanting to hide my hands because they looked so beefy red and ugly.  The worse case I can remember was in May 1985 when I was trying to finish reports, then rushing to catch a train, tram, do a long rush through a park to get to a hospital for an arthroscopy and I arrived an hour after I should have been there.  As it turned out, it was no big deal but I was totally stressed out.  I can remember going up to the ward in the lift and someone commenting on my hands which were bright red.  It took about four hours for the 'attack' to subside.  I, too, thought I had erythromelagia.  Now I never get such symptoms and I suspect that the blood vessels in my hands are not capable of dilating to that extent as a result of so many decades of Raynaud's.  This is not addressing your problem but I thought it might interest you.  The Erythromelagia-like symptoms were certainly exacerbated by stress but I have never found my Raynaud's symptoms to be brought on by anything but temperature fluctuations.  I know how difficult Raynaud's can be in managing the ordinary, daily things of life, especially when living alone; having both conditions must be a nightmare.  Did you have the nailfold capillary test?  How are things now?

Hi Maureen. Now it's my turn to apologise for not replying. My nailfold capilliary test was entirely unremarkable - making Scleroderma very unlikely for me - so Sjögren's is still thought to be my primary disease.

The Scleroderma doctor did explain, 4 weeks ago when I saw him, that I have a mild Raynauds secondary to my small fibre neuropathy. Since the climate dipped here in Scotland the itchy, scalding pain in my finger tips has returned - minus the Pompholyx eczema - I have none just now. I think they must be chilblains although it does seem strange to have these only on my fingertips going down under the distal part of each nail? 

I also have icy icy white legs and feet all the time now and one large toenail nail has a really mean splinter haemorrhage which feels and looks like an actual splinter! I showed my GP, assuming it must be fungal - but he assured me it wasn't so I'm none the wiser. My toe under the nail is really sore if I'm wearing shoes or even socks, or role onto my front - anything that puts pressure on the toenail. Bit weird - and I do think my GP must be wrong about it not being fungal? 

Hi tumtum,

i have neuropathy & raynauds... I originally thought I had a fungus, my toenails have turned hard, lumpy & at times they are black or blood red & my fingernails have turned a spicy mustard yellow & peel until they break off. My hands & feet are ice cold, at times discolored even in the hot summer & usually pain & go numb...it's a rotten, painful & gross disease...

hope you feel better soon... take care.