Evaluating performance of the 2019 EULAR/ACR, 2012 SLICC, and 1997 ACR criteria for classifying adult-onset and childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Concomitant sickle cell disease and systemic lupus erythematosus: A single-center case series

Sickle cell disease (SCD) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are two uncommon disorders each characterized by multisystemic manifestations. Individuals with SCD exhibit abnormalities in the complement pathway, which may predispose patients to develop autoimmune disorders such as SLE. As many manifestations of SLE mimic those of SCD, diagnosis and therapeutic management of SLE in a patient with known SCD may be delayed. In this study, we describe our institutional experience of diagnosing and managing concomitant SCD and SLE. We offer insights into the complex interplay between these conditions to enhance early recognition and effective management of concurrent SCD and SLE.

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus in Children

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a systemic autoimmune disease, that mainly affects skin, joints and kidneys but can affect any organ in the body. It is characterized by presence of multiple autoantibodies like ANA, antibodies to dsDNA and RNA associated proteins. The major mechanism leading to tissue damage includes immune complex mediated complement activation, interferon alpha release by plasmacytoid dendritic cells, NETosis by neutrophils as well as defects in monocytes leading to poor clearance of cellular debris and direct cellular dysfunction mediated by antibodies. A child can present with pyrexia of unknown origin, immune mediated cytopenias, malar rash, oral ulcers, serositis, glomerulonephritis or nervous system dysfunction. As renal disease has a bearing on the long term impact, all children should have urine exam and blood pressure measurement done to rule out renal disease. The treatment varies depending on the severity and organs involved. In life or organ threatening situations, pulse methylprednisolone is used. Hydroxychloroquine, Mycophenolate mofetil, Azathioprine and Cyclophosphamide are the commonly used drugs in SLE. Over the years the prognosis of SLE has improved probably due to early diagnosis and better use of immunosuppressive treatment, regular follow up and treatment of co-morbidities. The 10-year survival now approaches 90% and with advent of new and targeted therapy it is hoped that the morbidity and organ damage can also be minimized.

Updates in the care and management of children and adolescents with systemic lupus erythematosus

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

This narrative review offers an update of the most important recent articles published in the previous year of childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (cSLE), focusing on care and management.

RECENT FINDINGS

Age-related disparities may play a significant role in the clinical and laboratory characteristics of cSLE, as well as its performance in distinct classification criteria. Monogenic lupus is associated with higher disease damage scores and mortality rate compared to sporadic cSLE. Adolescent face unique challenges, with comorbid psychiatric diagnosis, low resilience and nonadherence posing relevant challenges. A recent international task force has outlined pivotal principles and points-to-consider for treat-to-target (T2T) in cSLE patients. While the past year did yield new randomized controlled trial for cSLE treatment, publications focused on broader management strategies, including the impact of ultraviolet radiation exposure, immunization, and strict blood pressure control. Additionally, case reports and series have evaluated the efficacy/safety profiles of both available and emerging treatments.

SUMMARY

Current studies highlighted the various facets of cSLE, epidemiology, clinical, laboratory, classification criteria, adolescent issues, prognosis, surveillance, T2T approach and drug management. Despite notable progress, the scarcity of randomized trials emphasizes the need to delineate safer and more efficacious treatment modalities in cSLE.

Comparison of systemic lupus international collaborating clinics 2012 classification criteria and European league against rheumatism/American college of rheumatology 2019 classification criteria for early detection of childhood onset systemic lupus erythematosus (multi-center study)

OBJECTIVE

To assess the performance of the new EULAR/ACR criteria, particularly for early detection of cSLE, in comparison to the SLICC criteria among the pediatric population in multiple centers in Saudi Arabia.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective study that enrolled pediatric patients up to the age of 14 years who've been diagnosed with SLE and followed in pediatric rheumatology clinics at 9 multi-tertiary hospitals in Saudi Arabia from 2010 to 2021 as a case group and were compared to a similar group of pediatric patients who've had defined rheumatological diseases other than SLE with a positive ANA titer (≥1:80) as controls. In total, 245 patients were included and distributed as 129 cases (diagnosed by expert pediatric rheumatologists) versus 116 patients in the control group. All relevant clinical information, including history, physical examination findings, and laboratory tests, was documented at the initial presentations. Then, the two sets of SLE classification criteria were applied to both groups to define who's going to meet both or either one of them. The exclusion criteria included those who had insufficient data or had overlapping or undifferentiated diseases. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), receiver operating curve (ROC), and accuracy were calculated for SLICC 2012 and EULAR/ACR 2019 criteria (total scores≥ 10 and ≥ 13). We performed a Chi-squared test to compare sensitivity and specificity of SLICC 2012 and EULAR/ACR 2019.

RESULTS

For SLICC (cut-off ≥4 criteria), the sensitivity was found to be 96.9% (95% CI 92.6%-99.4%) and the specificity was 94.8% (95% CI 89.6%-98.32%), with PPV and NPV of 95.4% and 96.5%, respectively. The ROC for it was 0.96 (95% CI 0.93-0.99), and this criterion had an accuracy of 95%. Regarding EULAR/ACR (total score ≥ 10), the performance measure showed a sensitivity of 99.2% and a specificity of 86.2%. Similarly, PPV was 88.9%; while NPV was a little higher (99.0%) than SLICC. The ROC for EULAR/ACR (total score ≥ 10) was 0.93 (95% CI 0.89-0.96), and this criterion had an accuracy of 93%. However, there was no statistically significant difference between the sensitivity and specificity of either using SLICC or EULAR/ACR (total score ≥ 10), as reflected by a p-value of 0.86 using the Chi-squared test. Although applying the EULAR/ACR with a total score of ≥ 13 revealed lower sensitivity (93.8%) than both the SLICC and the EULAR/ACR (total score ≥ 10), the specificity for it was found to increase up to 91.4% (85.7-96.2%) compared to the (86.2%) specificity of the EULAR/ACR (total score ≥ 10).

CONCLUSION

In this cohort among the Saudi population with childhood-onset SLE, the new EULAR/ACR 2019 criteria efficiently enable early detection of SLE, although a more frequent rate of false positives was observed with them. Escalating the total score from ≥ 10 to ≥ 13 in the cSLE population improved the specificity close to that of SLICC 2012. Further prospective studies in pediatrics need to be done for the validation of a cut- off score of ≥ 13 in cSLE rather than the traditional score of ≥ 10 in aSLE.

Association of phenotypic frailty and hand grip strength with telomere length in SLE

OBJECTIVE

Frailty and objective hand grip strength (one of the components of the frailty phenotype) are both risk factors for worse health outcomes in SLE. Whether telomere length, an established cellular senescence marker, is a biologic correlate of the frailty phenotype and hand grip strength in patients with SLE is not clear. First, we aimed to evaluate differences in telomere length between frail and non-frail women with SLE and then assessed whether frailty or hand grip strength is differentially associated with telomere length after adjusting for relevant confounders.

METHODS

Women ≥18 years of age with validated SLE enrolled at a single medical centre. Fried frailty status (which includes hand grip strength), clinical characteristics and telomere length were assessed cross-sectionally. Differences between frail and non-frail participants were evaluated using Fisher's exact or Wilcoxon rank-sum tests. The associations between frailty and hand grip strength and telomere length were determined using linear regression.

RESULTS

Of the 150 enrolled participants, 131 had sufficient data for determination of frailty classification; 26% were frail with a median age of 45 years. There was a non-significant trend towards shorter telomere length in frail versus non-frail participants (p=0.07). Hand grip strength was significantly associated with telomere length (beta coefficient 0.02, 95% CI 0.004, 0.04), including after adjustment for age, SLE disease activity and organ damage, and comorbidity (beta coefficient 0.02, 95% CI 0.002, 0.04).

CONCLUSIONS

Decreased hand grip strength, but not frailty, was independently associated with shortened telomere length in a cohort of non-elderly women with SLE. Frailty in this middle-aged cohort may be multifactorial rather than strictly a manifestation of accelerated ageing.