Systemic lupus erythematosus is a group of diseases that seem to become separate entities by etiology in the near future. Its pathogenesis remains elusive; however, multifactorial interactions among genetic and environmental factors may be involved. Systemic lupus erythematosus is the perfect prototype of autoimmune disorder with multiple derangements, starting from innate immunity to adaptive ...

OBJECTIVES We postulate that patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) having recurrent infections are more likely to have poorer disease outcome. The aim of this study is to describe the pattern of infections and disease damage that occurred in a cohort of patients with juvenile-onset SLE, and to find out whether cumulative disease damage was associated with recurrent infections in thes...

Systemic lupus erythematosus is a chronic systemic autoimmune disease, often associated with severe infection. A female patient was referred for surgical treatment of infective endocarditis after being treated for systemic lupus erythematosus and lupus nephritis. She developed symptoms of left axillary artery occlusion before heart operation. Bulky fungal hyphae were noted on pathological exami...

Chorea may occur as a neurological manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus and is often associated with detection of antiphospholipid antibodies. No evidence of chorea as a sign of lupus activity has been established. We describe a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus associated with antiphospholipid antibodies who developed chorea, which has been considered a sign of lupus activity.

INTRODUCTION Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a serious and often fatal complication of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Because the diagnosis of PAH often is made years after symptom onset, early diagnostic strategies are essential. Doppler echocardiography currently is considered the noninvasive screening test of choice for evaluating pulmonary hypertension. AIM Screening for asy...

Systemic lupus erythematosus is a complex autoimmune disease with multisystem involvement with varied presentation. Autoimmune adrenal disease, on the other hand, can be associated with other autoimmune diseases. Adrenal insufficiency as a presenting feature of Systemic lupus erythematosus is a rare occurrence. We hereby report a case of a 20 year-old female who presented to us in an acute hypo...

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation was first reported for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus in 1997. The procedure has since been performed worldwide including in Europe, in Brazil, and in China. A National Institutes of Health-funded phase III clinical trial of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for refractory systemic lupus erythematosus is anticipated to begin in 2003. Enc...

Background The prevalence of autoimmune thrombocytopenia in juvenile systemic lupus erythematosus (JSLE) ranges from 7–52% (mean 14,5%) but profound rates (<50,000/mL) are uncommon. Although the exact mechanism is unknown, the spleen has been implicated either as the source of antiplatelet antibodies or the site of sensitized platelets destruction. Splenectomy is rarely indicated due to the inc...

Introduction Up to 80% of children with Juvenile Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (JSLE) develop lupus nephritis (LN) (1), with the 5-year renal survival rate varying between 44-94% (2-4). Conventional markers of JSLE disease activity fail to adequately predict impending LN flares (5), with significant renal involvement (class III, IV or V LN) known to occur with low level proteinuria (6). Cross-se...