Calcinosis in thumb

[Eden1234]

Hi, just wondered if anyone has/had extensive calcinosis on thumb pad and if so, what treatment have you had to try and reduce ? Any surgical interventions?

[LucyJean]

Hi there, yes, I have both thumbs full of calcium, right worse than left. I had surgery about 6 years ago to remove the calcinosis that was sitting in the right thumb web, which was like a small boulder and was meaning that my hand function was really impaired. The surgeon didn't, and couldn't remove all of it. Also bear in mind that a lot of the calcinosis is not hard. Some is still at the 'toothpaste' stage and so loads of that comes out too. The problem is that it can take a long time to heal, and is more prone to infections, and often there is not enough good skin to properly close the wound. Definitely a last resort.There are, as yet, no medications, or interventions that I am aware of, or any Rheumatologists I have ever spoken to, are aware of that stops it or improves it. It seems to have bursts of activity and periods of quiet. I have always got bits of calcinosis coming to the surface and erupting out of the skin. Sometimes there is a really big release because the pressure has built up so much that loads is released. Last year I had a load that burst out of the bottom of my thumb nail and for quite a while I only had half a nail covering the thumb. It settled back down though.

I try and protect the bits that are open. I put little pads on the vulnerable bits if I am doing something that might cause a problem. I have antibiotic cream that I use sometimes, and I am very careful with hand hygiene and moisturising.

That was a long rambling post, to not give you much advice I am afraid!

All my best

Lucy xx

[kimbalina in reply to LucyJean]

I used manuka honey on my calcified elbow. Worked well

[Ricexxjm in reply to kimbalina]

Rubbed it on or consumed the honey

[Ricexxjm in reply to LucyJean]

Where does the calcium come from?

[LucyJean in reply to Ricexxjm]

Hi there, I don't think there is a great deal of understanding regarding the underlying process but there are a number of different forms of calcinosis that you can get. The one related to scleroderma is called Dystrophic. This is the most common cause of calcinosis cutis. People who have this type have normal phosphorus and calcium levels, but have an underlying disease or injury that damages the skin. The dying cells release proteins that bind phosphate and cause calcium deposits. (This is according to Webmd). The calcium deposits occur in the subcutaneous fat layer of the skin. They tend to be found on pressure points, like the finger tips, elbows and so on.webmd.com/skin-problems-and...

dermnetnz.org/topics/calcin...

There is a lot of information out there. I noticed on the Scleroderma news website that they say it can be caused by high level of Vitamin D, but this is not true for the type of calcinosis associated with scleroderma, only the metastatic form that is associated with abnormal levels of calcium and phosphate.

Anyway, it remains a bit of a mystery and it seems that people have varying success with a range of experimental treatments.

Hope that all makes sense

Lucy xxx