gastrointetinal and hepatic manifestations of systemic lupus erythematosus

gastrointestinal (gi) and hepatic manifestations are not uncommon in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (sle). they include nonspecific symptoms as well as serious, life-threatening complications necessitating urgent, aggressive therapy. in addition to direct involvement of the gi system by the disease, many drug-induced side effects and opportunistic infections have gi and hepatic manifestations in these patients. moreover, autopsy studies indicate a high prevalence of subclinical gi involvement in lupus patients. in this manuscript, the more clinically significant gastrointestinal and hepatic complications are reviewed.