The stomach itself is not commonly involved in scleroderma. The main problem encountered is slow emptying of the stomach into the small intestine, which leads to a sensation of fullness or bloating. The motility drugs already mentioned can help.
As well as occurring in the mouth and on the skin, telangiectasia can also occur in the stomach. This is known as "watermelon stomach" due to the appearance of the inside of the stomach when seen through an endoscope! Bleeding of these telangiectasia may cause anaemia but this condition responds well to laser treatment.
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