AB0519 Quality of Life of Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Its Correlation with Disease Activity and Organ Damage

BackgroundIn order to assess adequately the success of treatment of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), the patient's individual perception of his physical and mental health and degree of integration into the community is required. The most commonly used standardized quality of life questionnaire, involving physical, mental and social acpects, is The Medical Outcome Survey Short Form 36 (SF-36). The results regarding the correlation of activity index and degree of organ damage in SLE patients with quality of life have so far been contradictory.ObjectivesOur aim was to evaluate the quality of life of SLE patients using the SF-36 questionnaire, and to establish the correlation of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI), organ damage index - SLICC/ACR Damage Index (SDI) with quality of life.MethodsThe study enrolled 85 SLE patients aged 45.3±9.7 years on the average, out of which 78 (91.8%) women and 7 (8.2%) men, with average disease duration of 10.4±8.0 years, hospitalized at the Clinic of Rheumatology, “Niška Banja” Institute, in whom the diagnosis was made based on the revised 1997 ACR criteria. Disease activity was assessed using the SLEDAI questionnaire, organ damage using the SDI, and quality of life using the SF-36 questionnaire. The control group consisted of 30 healthy examinees. Both groups were homogenous as to the factors of gender and age.ResultsOur results showed that there was significantly worse quality of life in all SF-36 domains in SLE patients compared to controls (p