| Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) |
| This page was written by Shelley Ensz, and has not yet been medically edited. See Disclaimer. |
|
|
|
| Symptoms and Complications of Lupus |
| |
| Overview of Lupus Symptoms |
| What are the symptoms of lupus? MedicineNet |
| Test Yourself for Lupus Lupus Foundation of America |
| Neuropsychiatric (NP) Syndromes Common With Lupus (SLE) and Sjogren Syndrome (PSS). Headache, cognitive dysfunction and mood disorders are common in both diseases, but otherwise there are distinct differences in NP involvement, with cerebrovascular diseases more prevalent in SLE and neuropathies more common in PSS. This indicates that some NP disease mechanisms are shared while others differ between the two diseases. E. Harboe. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases 2009;68:1541-1546. (Also see: Sjogren's) |
| People with lupus often have poor sense of smell. New research indicates that the sense of smell is reduced in people with systemic lupus erythematosus, or SLE, and the degree of the deficit correlates with the severity of lupus. MedilinePlus (Reuters). 05/08/09. |
| Interstitial cystitis (IC) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in a 20-year-old woman. Chronic IC is an uncommon manifestation of SLE. (PubMed). Do Socorro Teixeira Moreira Almeida M. Rheumatol Int. 2008 Aug 12. (Also see: Interstitial Cystitis) |
| Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) |
| Thrombosis in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and Other Autoimmune Diseases of Recent Onset. Patients with autoimmune diseases, particularly SLE, are at an increased risk of thrombosis. J. Romero -Diaz. J Rheumatol First Release Nov 15 2008. (Also see: Antiphospholipid Syndrome) |
| Raynaud's Phenomenon Is Not An Independent Risk Factor For Arterial Thrombotic Events (ATE) In Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE). The presence and duration of Raynaud's phenomenon did not increase the risk of ATE in our cohort of SLE patients after adjusting for common thrombotic risk factors. S. Appenzeller. THU0227. EULAR 2008. |
| Systemic Lupus Erythematosus in a Multiethnic US Cohort: Relationship Between Vascular Events and the Use of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) in Postmenopausal Women. HRT use in women with SLE should be individualized, but our data suggest its use may be safe if antiphospholipid antibodies are not present or vascular arterial events have not previously occurred. Journal of Clinical Rheumatology. Oct 2007.13:5. |
| Features Associated with Epilepsy in the Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS). Epilepsy is common in APS and most of the risk seems to be linked to vascular disease as manifested by extensive CNS involvement, valvulopathy, and livedo reticularis and to the presence of SLE. These factors, however, explain only part of the increased occurrence of epilepsy in APS and other causes such as direct immune interaction in the brain should be investigated. J Rheumatol. VOLUME 31: NO. 7 JULY 2004;31:1344-8. (Also see: Antiphospholipid Syndrome) |
| Atherosclerosis |
| Pattern of Arterial Calcification in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE). Our study confirms that patients with SLE have significantly higher prevalence and extent of systemic arterial calcification compared with age and sex matched controls. Kai-Hang Yui. JRheum. September 15 2009. |
| Lupus: Atherosclerosis Risk Factor Be vigilant about atherosclerosis in lupus patients. Two case-control studies have confirmed a previously suggested link between systemic lupus erythematosus and atherosclerosis. Published in Journal Watch Cardiology March 5, 2004. Journal Watch. |
| Brain |
| Migraine Is An Independent Risk Factor For Arterial Thrombotic Events (ATE) In Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE). The presence and the frequency of migraine attacks, but not the duration of migraine was associated with ATE in SLE patients. S. Appenzeller. THU0228. EULAR 2008. (Also see: Vascular Headache) |
| Peripheral nervous system lesion syndromes and the mechanisms of their formation in connective tissue diseases. Systemic rheumatological diseases are often accompanied by the development of central and peripheral nervous system pathology. Lupus erythematosus and systemic scleroderma in particular are characterized by polyneuropathies and tunnel syndromes. PubMed. Neurosci Behav Physiol. 2007 Jan;37(1):1-6. (Also see: Brain Involvement) |
| Calcinosis |
| Calcinosis cutis universalis in a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus. Deposition of calcium salts in the skin and subcutaneous tissue occurs in a variety of rheumatic diseases, being most commonly associated with scleroderma, CREST (calcinosis, Raynaud's phenomenon, esophageal dysfunction, sclerodactyly, and telangiectasia), dermatomyositis, and overlap syndromes but is a rare complication of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). PubMed. Clin Rheumatol. 2005 May 18. (Also see: Calcinosis) |
| Cognitive and Affective Deficits |
| Neuropsychiatric (NP) syndromes in patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and primary Sjögren’s Syndrome (PSS): A comparative population-based study. Headache, cognitive dysfunction, and mood disorders are common in both diseases, but otherwise there are distinct differences in NP involvement with cerebrovascular disease more prevalent in SLE, and neuropathies more common in PSS. (ARD Online) E. Harboe. Ann Rheum Dis. October 17, 2008. (Also see: Sjögren's) |
| Hippocampal damage in mouse and human forms of systemic autoimmune disease. Taken together, these results suggest that systemic autoimmunity induces significant hippocampal damage, which may underlie affective and cognitive deficits in NP-SLE. PubMed. Hippocampus. 2004;14(5):649-61. (Also see: Brain Involvement) |
| Fatigue in Lupus |
| Patient´s Descriptions of SLE-Related Fatigue. Given the opportunity to express the consequences of fatigue with their own words, patients report a multidimensional array of complex physical and psychosocial aspects on this burdensome symptom. Susanne Pettersson. 1257/489. ACR 2007. (Also see: Fatigue) |
| Update on the immunology, diagnosis and management of systemic lupus erythematosus. Lupus occurs with a prevalence of 2-9 in 10 000 people, targeting female and indigenous populations in particular. Evanescent, vague symptoms, restrictive diagnostic criteria and low diagnostic suspicion might have resulted in the under-diagnosis of these problems in the past, imposing considerable burdens on sufferers and the community. PubMed. Intern Med J. 2004 Jun;34(6):338-47. |
| Fibromyalgia and Lupus |
| Number of Fibromyalgia Tender Points Is Associated with Health Status in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. A strong association between the number of FM TP and health status was found in patients with SLE. The number of TP, and not just the presence/absence of FM, is associated with health status in SLE. J Rheumatol. NO. 1 January 2005;32:48-50. (Also see: Fibromyalgia) |
| Gastrointestinal |
| Gastrointestinal manifestations. Collagen vascular diseases are known to present with a diverse array of gastrointestinal manifestations. These can be classified as: 1) gastrointestinal damage due to the collagen vascular disease itself; 2) adverse events caused by pharmacotherapies; or 3) gastrointestinal infections following immunosuppression due to corticosteroid (CS) administration. PubMed. Nihon Rinsho Meneki Gakkai Kaishi. 2004 Jun;27(3):145-55. (Also see: Scleroderma Gastrointestinal Involvement) |
| Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis Associated With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. Previous studies have described eosinophilic gastroenteritis in patients with scleroderma, polymyositis, or dermatomyositis. This is the first report to our knowledge of an individual with eosinophilic gastroenteritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. PubMed. J Clin Gastroenterol. 2004 Nov;38(10):883-886. |
| Heart Disease |
| Predictors of the first cardiovascular event in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus - a prospective cohort study. In addition to age, positive antiphospholipid antibody, biomarkers indicating increased endothelial cell activity/damage, and absence of thrombocytopenia were independent predictors of CVEs in this prospective study. J. Gustafsson. Arthritis Research & Therapy. December 10 2009. |
| The relationship between race, cigarette smoking and carotid intimal medial thickness (mIMT) in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Black women, but not White, with SLE with a history of smoking have higher mIMT measurements than those who have never smoked. This is the first report documenting the race-specific effect of smoking on subclinical measures of cardiovascular disease in SLE. (SageJournals) LV Scalzi. Lupus. December 1 2009. |
| Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and the risk of cardiovascular disease: Results from the nurses' health study. In this prospective population-based study, we found a statistically significant >2-fold increased risk of cardiovascular disease among participants with SLE. (PubMed) AE Hak. Arthritis Rheum. September 29 2009. |
| 25-hydroxyvitamin D and cardiovascular risk factors in women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). This study demonstrates that vitamin D levels are low in women with SLE and significant associations exist with selected cardiovascular risk factors, although most of these associations can be explained by Body Mass Index. (PubMed) PW Wu. Arthritis Rheum. September 29 2009. |
| Ascending aortic aneurysm in a patient with bicuspid aortic valve. The bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) and specific systemic autoimmune diseases are associated with cardiovascular manifestation, including aortic aneurysm. I. Foffa. Cardiovascular Ultrasound. July 6 2009. |
| Predictors of cardiovascular damage in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE): data from LUMINA (LXVIII), a multiethnic US cohort. Our data suggest that atherosclerotic cardiovascular damage in SLE is multifactorial; traditional (age, gender) and disease-related factors (CRP levels, SDI at baseline) appear to be important contributors to such an occurrence. Tight control of the inflammatory process must be achieved to prevent it. Guillermo J. Pons-Estel Rheumatology, May 19, 2009. |
| Association between depression and coronary artery calcification (CAC) in women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). In women with SLE, depression was associated with CAC, thus contributing to cardiovascular disease risk. C. Greco. Rheumatology. March 13, 2009. |
| Preeclampsia, dilated cardiomyopathy and renal failure as the first manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE): a case report. We report the case of a 26-year-old woman with severe renal and congestive heart failure as a primary manifestation of SLE after her premature terminated pregnancy for the symptoms of preeclampsia with HELLP syndrome. (SpringerLink) J. Stepankova. Clinical Rheumatology. Dec 12 2008. |
| Coronary Calcium in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) Is Associated with Traditional Cardiovascular Risk Factors, But Not with Disease Activity. Age, body mass index, and diabetes mellitus are more important associates of coronary calcium in SLE than inflammatory markers and SLE clinical activity. J Rheumatol First Release May 15 2008. |
| Jaccoud's Arthritis |
| Jaccoud's Arthritis or Jaccoud's arthropathy. A progressive deforming arthropathy of the hands and feet in young adults following recurrent rheumatic fever or systemic lupus erythematosus. Who named it? |
| Erosive or Deforming Arthritis in Systemic Lupus Erithematosus: Jaccoud's Arthritis, Overlap Syndromes or Mixed Connective Tissue Disease? In our experience, erosive or deforming arthritis is rare in SLE patients who do not meet criteria for MCTD or Overlap Syndromes. The so-called Jaccoud's arthritis is the most frequent deforming arthritis among them. E. Becerra. (THU0268) EULAR 2009. (Also see: MCTD) |
| Kidney Involvement |
| Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) is as efficacious as, but safer than, cyclophosphamide (CYC) in the treatment of proliferative lupus nephritis: a meta-analysis and meta-regression. MMF offers similar efficacy in renal remission and survival as CYC, and appears safer in the treatment of proliferative lupus nephritis. A. Mak. Rheumatology Advance Access. June 3 2009. (Also see: Lupus Treatments) |
| The Relationship Between Renal Activity and Quality of Life (QOL) in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE). Patients with SLE and active renal disease concurrently experience a slightly poorer QOL than those without renal disease, especially in the physical domains. S. Appenzellar. J. Rheum. April 15, 2009. |
| Time of initial appearance of renal symptoms in the course of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) as a prognostic factor for lupus nephritis (LN). Onset time of LN in the course of SLE may affect renal prognosis. (SpringerLink) Y. Takahashi. Modern Rheumatology. March 10, 2009. |
| Changes in the Incidence of Endstage Renal Disease (ESRD) Due to Lupus Nephritis in the United States. There was no decrease in the incidence of ESRD due to lupus nephritis between 1996 and 2004. This may reflect the limits of effectiveness of current treatments, or limitations in access, use, or adherence to treatment. M. Ward. J Rheumatol. January 2009. |
| Preeclampsia, dilated cardiomyopathy and renal failure as the first manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE): a case report. We report the case of a 26-year-old woman with severe renal and congestive heart failure as a primary manifestation of SLE after her premature terminated pregnancy for the symptoms of preeclampsia with HELLP syndrome. (SpringerLink) J. Stepankova. Clinical Rheumatology. Dec 12 2008. |
| Liver Involvement |
| Liver enzyme abnormalities in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE): a focus on toxic hepatitis. Herbal medicines and anti-tuberculosis medications, known to cause toxic hepatitis, can also induce increased liver enzyme levels in SLE patients. However, since most herbal medicines contain a mixture of various products, we could not ascertain what specific ingredient induced the increase in liver enzyme levels. (SpringerLink) H. Minyoung. Rheumatology International. November 3 2009. |
| Microstomia (Small Mouth) |
| Microstomia (small mouth) is most often caused by systemic scleroderma. However, it has occasionally been associated with systemic lupus (SLE) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA), or Sjogren's. ISN. |
| Microstomia does not necessarily mean scleroderma. Two patients with microstomia in the absence of any features of progressive systemic sclerosis are documented. The first patient had systemic lupus erythematosus and the second rheumatoid arthritis/Sjogren's syndrome with a complicating myositis. S Afr Med J. 1996 Aug;86(8):970-1. |
| Oral rehabilitation of a patient with scleroderma associated with systematic lupus erythematosus (SLE): a case report. A new approach was required for this patient with SLE who had a very limited mouth opening. The retention for the removable partial denture (RPD) used the undercut in the abutment teeth and a magnet-retained sectional RPD. P ubMed. Spec Care Dentist. 2006 May-Jun;26(3):121-3. (Also see: Dental Involvement) |
| Miscarriages |
| Miscarriages May Be A Symptom Of Greater Health Risk. Autoimmune Diseases, such as lupus or thyroid conditions, are associated with RPL (Recurrent Pregnancy Loss) and infertility. If you have a history of autoimmune disease and unexplained RPL, ask about these potentially appropriate tests: ACA/APA, LAC (Lupus Anti-coagulant). ElitesTV. 07/19/05. (Also see: Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Thyroid Disease) |
| Persistent Lupus Myelitis |
| Mycophenolate Mofetil and Intravenous Dexamethasone in the Treatment of Persistent Lupus Myelitis. Subsequent therapy with mycophenolate mofetil and continuous intravenous infusions of dexamethasone resulted in reduction of the lesion's size, disappearance of magnetic resonance imaging enhancement, and a complete recovery. J Rheumatol 2007;34:588-91 (Also see: Rheumatic Treatments) |
| Pulmonary Hypertension |
| Prevalence and risk factors for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in patients with lupus (SLE). The significant association of lupus anti coagulant (LAC) and presence of anti-phospholipid antibodies (APS) in PAH cases suggests that thrombosis may play an important role in PAH with SLE. A. Prabu. Rheumatology Advance Access. August 11 2009. |
| Raynaud's phenomenon (RP) is correlated with elevated systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (PASP) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). In patients with SLE, the presence of RP was associated with elevation in PASP. Further investigation is needed to clarify the significance of this relation. Lupus (2007) 16, 505—508. (Also see: Raynaud's) |
| Thyroid Disease |
| Prevalence of Thyroid Dysfunction in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. Our patients with SLE had a high prevalence of symptomatic and significantly more subclinical hypothyroidism and positive thyroid autoantibodies. We believe that, since symptoms of SLE and thyroid disease can be similar, that SLE patients should routinely been investigated for autoimmune thyroid disease. S. Appenzeller, MD, PhD. Journal of Clinical Rheumatology: April 2009. Vol 15. Issue 3. pp 117-119. |
| Vascular Involvement |
| Prevalence, predictors and outcome of vascular damage in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Vascular events (VE) occurred in 26% of SLE patients, predominantly as atherothrombotic disease. VE prevalence increased linearly over time leading to a four-fold risk of mortality. (SageJournals). A. Becker-Merok. Lupus. April 2009. (Also see: Vascular Disease) |
