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Article Type

Original Study

Abstract

Objective The aim of this study was to describe the most common causes of admission of Egyptian patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and the outcomes of these hospitalizations. Background SLE is a prototypic multisystem autoimmune disorder with a broad spectrum of clinical presentations. Studying the causes and outcomes of SLE patients will guide rheumatologists in better management of cases to improve outcomes. Patients and methods The charts of patients with SLE who were hospitalized at our Department of Internal Medicine during a 10-month period from August 2015 to June 2016 were reviewed in a retrospective manner, and their demographic, clinical, and laboratory data were collected. Results There were 85 admissions of 40 patients with SLE. Seventeen (42.5%) patients were admitted twice or more. The mean length of stay for all admissions was 8 days (2–30). The most common cause of admission was active SLE (62 events, 72.9%). SLE was initially diagnosed in 11 (27.5%) patients in our department of internal medicine. Other causes of hospitalization were infections (9.4%), drug complications (2.4%), thromboembolic events (3.5%), and assessment of the disease (10.6%). Three (3.5%) hospitalizations resulted in death. Conclusion Our study of this Egyptian SLE population confirms the findings of previous studies suggesting that active SLE and infection remain the most common causes of hospitalization of patients with SLE.

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