Associations of Raynaud's Phenomenon in Juvenile Onset Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

INTRODUCTION: Raynaud’s phenomenon (RP) is associated with mild disease in adults with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Although RP is more frequently reported in juvenile onset SLE (jSLE) clinical associations were not studied. We aimed to investigate whether the presence of RP is associated with clinical and serological features at onset and outcomes in children with SLE.
METHODS: Medical charts of children diagnosed with jSLE were reviewed. The presence of RP was evaluated by the presence of patients reporting symptoms, and patients were compared according to the presence of RP.
RESULTS: Among the 52 included patients, 13 (25.0%) displayed RP. The clinical and laboratory features did not significantly differ according to the presence of RP. However, positive anti-dsDNA (76.9% vs. 35.8%, p = 0.02), anti-RNP (53.8% vs. 17.9%, p = 0.02), and anti-centromere (23.0% vs. 2.5% p = 0.04) antibodies were more frequently observed in patients with RP than in those without. RP was not found to be associated with initial disease severity, flare rate, remission, or damage accrual.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: RP was associated with certain serological features. However, RP was not strongly associated with clinical features. Moreover, neither disease severity nor disease outcomes differed according to the presence of RP in children with SLE.