BMJ  2006;332:890-894 (15 April), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7546.890

Clinical review

Systemic lupus erythematosus

¹ Louise Coote Lupus Unit, St Thomas' Hospital, London SE1 7EH david.d'cruz@kcl.ac.uk

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Introduction

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multisystem autoimmune connective tissue disorder with various clinical presentations. It is prevalent among young women with a peak age of onset between the late teens and early 40s and a female to male ratio of 9:1. It is more common in certain ethnic groups, such as people with African or Asian ancestry. One study estimated the prevalence of lupus as 27.7/100 000 and as high as 206/100 000 in Afro-Caribbean women.¹ SLE is a chronic illness that may be life threatening when major organs are affected but more commonly results in chronic debilitating ill health. No single cause for SLE has been identified, though factors such as sunlight and drugs may precipitate the condition, and there is a complex genetic basis. Autoantibodies may be present for many years before the clinical onset of the disease, and there may be increasing numbers of antibodies just . . . [Full text of this article]

Sources and selection criteria

Clinical presentation

Management of SLE

Fatigue

Arthralgia and skin rashes

Lupus nephritis

Central nervous system disease

Antiphospholipid (Hughes) syndrome

Cardiovascular risk

Pregnancy, contraceptive pills, and hormone replacement therapy

Novel treatments

Conclusion

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