Espirito Santo Saude SGPS : Hospital da Luz Arrábida Pioneer in Digital Capillaroscopy

Hospital da Luz Arrábida Pioneer in Digital Capillaroscopy

Hospital da Luz Arrábida offers its clients, since December, digital capillaroscopy, a non-invasive exam that allows to study blood microcirculation (at capillary vessels level). It's the first private health unit in the north of the country to use this technique, applied by Mariana Brandão, an Internal Medicine specialist with considerable experience in the execution and interpretation of these exams.

Digital capillaroscopy is performed through a microscope (videocapillaroscope), which allows to study blood capillary vessels in the peripheral area of the nails, simultaneously registering images.

This medical exam assumes particular importance in the study and follow-up of rheumatologic/immune diseases - such as systemic sclerosis, connective tissue mixed disease, systemic lupus erythematosus and dermatomyositis, among others -, since it allows to distinguish between primary and secondary Raynaud's phenomenon (where blood vessels in fingers or toes change colour). It is also indicated for staging and monitoring diseases that affect blood microcirculation, such as diabetes mellitus and hypertension.