AB0583 Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Hospitalization: Seasonality, Causes and Outcome During a 10-Years Period (2003-2013)

BackgroundSystemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by a wide range of clinical manifestations and by a typically fluctuant course. Although SLE patients' survival has significantly increased in the last decades, morbidity and hospitalization are still considerably high.ObjectivesAim of this study was to analyze seasonality, causes and outcome of SLE patients' hospitalization in a tertiary centre over a 10-years period.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective analysis of all the admissions to the Rheumatology Unit in a period of 10 years; we used hospital registries as a source of causes and time of hospitalization. The analysis was then restricted on SLE patients: we collected demographic, clinical and serological features. In particular, we investigated the frequency and causes of hospitalization, the seasonality and mortality. We evaluated disease activity through SLE Disease Activity Index-2000 (SLEDAI-2K), and chronic damage by the SLICC Damage Index (SDI).ResultsBetween January 2003 and December 2013, we admitted to our Rheumatology Unit 1615 patients: 315 (19.5%) were SLE patients (M/F 35/280; mean ± SD age 38.5±12.3 years; mean ± SD disease duration 135.2±99.7 months). The mean ± SD time of hospital stay was 15.4±17.8 days. Disease flare was the most frequent cause of hospitalization, recorded in 66.7% of SLE patients, followed by infections (12.4%), active lupus nephritis for renal biopsy (9.3%), infusional therapies (4.5%), drugs adverse events (1.4%), cancer (0.6%) and cardiovascular accident (0.3%), other (4.8%). The frequency of disease flare was significantly higher than all the other causes of hospital admittance [P