Background Many pediatric rheumatic diseases persist into adulthood, with negative squeal from the disease or its treatment. We aimed to assess health related quality of life in a group of children with rheumatic diseases and its relation to disease activity and functional disability.  Materials and Methods Fifty one patients were divided into three groups: Group 1 includes 27 patients diagnose...

Microparticles (MPs) are vesicles derived from the plasma membrane of different cells, are considered a source of circulating autoantigens, and can form immune complexes (MPs-ICs). The number of MPs and MPs-ICs increases in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). MPs activate myeloid cells by inducing IL-6 and TNF-α in both SLE and other diseases. Therefore, we propose that the recogn...

OBJECTIVES The British Isles Lupus Assessment Group (BILAG) index is a standardized systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) disease activity assessment. The main aim of this study was to correlate the BILAG index with laboratory measures of disease activity in childhood-onset SLE with and without biopsy-proven lupus nephritis. METHOD Prospective observational comparison study of the BILAG index in...

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by the production of autoantibodies and the formation of immune complexes that can damage multiple tissues, organs and systems. IL‐17 is a proinflammatory cytokine that plays an important role in several autoimmune diseases including SLE. The expression of IL‐17 is elevated in both SLE patients and in lupus‐prone m...

This study was conducted to (1) characterize coagulation cascade and complement system in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); (2) evaluate the associations between coagulation cascade, complement system, inflammatory response and SLE disease severity; (3) test the diagnostic value of a combination of D-dimer and C4 for lupus activity. Transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics were performed ...

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has emerged as an important cause of death in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Reduced adiponectin and elevated leptin levels may contribute to CVD in SLE patients. The purpose of this study was to verify the effects of fish oil (FO) on adiponectin and leptin in patients with SLE. Biochemical and disease activity analysis were performed. Patients wi...

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a risk factor for hypertension. Previously, we demonstrated that an established mouse model of SLE (female NZBWF1 mice) develops hypertension with renal inflammation and oxidative stress, both characteristics known as contributing mechanisms to the development of salt-sensitive hypertension. On the basis of this model, we hypothesized that blood pressure in...

INTRODUCTION Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease involving multiple organ systems. Previous studies have suggested that interferon-lambda 1 (IFN-λ1), a type III interferon, plays an immunomodulatory role. In this study we investigated its role in SLE, including its correlation with disease activity, organ disorder and production of chemokines. METHODS We determined lev...

Amongst the different clinical and laboratory parameters used to Background: monitor disease activity in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), mean platelet volume (MPV) is a novel biomarker. Although MPV has been studied in other rheumatological conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, its role in adult SLE needs to be defined, especially in Pakistan. The aim of this study was to Methods: evaluate ...

Objective—To examine the relation between fatigue, disease activity, damage, and quality of life measures in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Methods—Consecutive patients attending the University of Toronto Lupus Clinic were studied. Disease activity was assessed using the SLEDAI and SLAM-R and damage using the SLICC/ACR Damage index. Fatigue was measured by the Fatigue Severit...