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Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Silent Cardiac Impairment in SLE

Arthritis & Rheumatology  |  

Drug-naive, new-onset SLE patients, even those with inactive disease, are likely to have silent cardiac impairment, according to a new study by Guo et al. Cardiac involvement is the leading cause of death in patients with lupus, and the estimates of cardiac impairment in SLE range from 31–70%. Cardiac impairment can remain unrecognized until after autopsy. These researchers investigated the use of cardiac MRI to explore early warning signs of silent cardiac involvement in SLE and determine treatment timing…

Pediatric Lupus Outcomes: Researchers Follow Kids into Adulthood

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A study published in the May issue of Arthritis Care & Research may be the first to examine the long-term outcomes of childhood-onset lupus, otherwise known as pediatric systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a chronic, multisystem autoimmune disease with a highly variable clinical course. Previous studies examined cross-sectional views of damage accrued. According to the Childhood…

The Value of Repeat Antibody Testing in Lupus Patients

Catherine Kolonko  |  

A recent study suggests costly antibody screening among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus could be reduced by limiting repeat screening of extractable nuclear antigens (ENAs). Researchers investigated how often results changed for anti-ENA and other commonly screened antibodies in repeat testing of patients with SLE. The findings were published in the Journal of Rheumatology.1 “We theorized,…

Lupus Nephritis Improvements: A 5-Decade Retrospective Review

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The incidence of lupus nephritis in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) has decreased over the past 50 years, according to a study from Gabriella Moroni, who works in the Nephrology Unit at Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico in Milano, Italy.1 Typically, renal involvement is part of the disease course for two-thirds of…

Ustekinumab May Be Effective for Lupus

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New research underscores the possibility that interleukin (IL) 12, IL-23 or both play roles in the immunopathology of SLE. In the study, when added to standard-of-care treatment for active SLE, ustekinumab demonstrated better efficacy than placebo and had a safety profile consistent with that of ustekinumab therapy in other diseases…

Fighting Lupus Among Latinas

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Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is more prevalent among Hispanic women than white women, according to two recent studies published in Arthritis & Rheumatology.1,2 However, Latinas often lack awareness of lupus, which can contribute to delays in diagnosis and treatment, and lead to worse outcomes. “One of the challenges is reaching out to the Latino community,…

Study Reveals Lupus Is a Leading Cause of Death in U.S. Women

Kimberly J. Retzlaff  |  

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a leading cause of death among young women, according to an August 2018 study in Arthritis & Rheumatology.1 To help determine where SLE ranks among causes of death, Eric Y. Yen, MD, and Ram Raj Singh, MD, conducted a population-based study using nationwide mortality counts for all female residents of…

Study Says Low Disease-Activity State Can Reduce Lupus Organ Damage

Bryn Nelson, PhD  |  

Over time, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) can lead to considerable organ damage. Preventing this outcome is complicated by a scarcity of treatment options that can drive the disease into remission and by the side effects of existing therapies, such as prednisone and other corticosteroids, which may themselves contribute to the long-term damage. The largest study…

Lupus Patient Develops Miller Fisher Variant of Guillain-Barré Syndrome

Sedrick Bradley, MD, & Nirupa J. Patel, MD  |  

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a heterogeneous, auto­immune, inflammatory, connective tissue disease affecting multiple organs. Neither central nervous system nor peripheral nervous systems are spared. The neurologic system is involved in a wide range of 10–80% of patients with SLE. Peripheral neuropathy, such as Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) and its variants, can occur in neurologic complications…

A Historical Look at the Characterization of Lupus as a Systemic Disease

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The disease called systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) went through many different stages of classification before reaching the modern criteria reflecting our current understanding of its pathogenesis. In 1872, the Viennese dermatologist Moriz Kaposi, MD, published a paper, “New Contributions to Knowledge of Lupus Erythematosus,” which provided a significant leap forward in the characterization of this…