Enterocyte-labelling index in the duodenal mucosa of patients with progressive systemic sclerosis (PSS).

Ten patients with progressive systemic sclerosis (PSS), 4 patients with other gastro-intestinal diseases and 5 normal controls, underwent small intestinal biopsy procedure. The biopsy material was incubated with tritiated thymidine and processed for auto-radiography. The labelling index (LI) in the small intestinal mucosa was estimated. The LI in PSS patients with duodenal involvement was significantly higher than the LI in PSS patients without duodenal involvement. In the latter group, the LI was at the same level as in normal controls. The LI in patients with other gastro-intestinal diseases, with diarrhoea as a main symptom, was not significantly different from the LI found in duodenal PSS.