Raynaud's disease: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

Raynaud's disease is a condition that affects blood flow to the extremities which include the fingers, toes, nose and ears. It was named after Maurice Raynaud, a French physician who first described it in 1862.

Signs and symptoms

Patients with Raynaud's have fingertips that, in the cold, are painful and undergo a colour change from white (pale) to blue to red.

It is important to distinguish Raynaud's disease from Raynaud's phenomenon, which occurs secondary to a large group of diseases, mainly connective tissue disorders such as systemic lupus erythematosus, scleroderma/systemic sclerosis and many others.

The disease often develops in young patients (teenagers, 20s), becomes apparent in cold and emotional stress, is symmetrical, and does not progress to necrosis or gangrene of the fingertips. In addition, it runs in families. Often, doctors will look for signs of arthritis or vasculitis and conduct a number of laboratory tests before diagnosing Raynaud's disease as opposed to Raynaud's phenomonon.