Challenges of Diagnosing Cognitive Dysfunction With Neuropsychiatric Systemic Lupus Erythematosus in Childhood

The diagnosis of Neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus disease (NPSLE) is challenging. The Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics (ANAM) has been shown to be an accessible and promising tool for evaluating possible NPSLE in adult and childhood lupus. In this review, we present information about the development and use of Ped-ANAM; the benefit of using Ped-ANAM in children with and without NPSLE in the assessment and follow up of their disease condition; and the correlation of Ped-ANAM to imaging studies such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). PedANAM was validated in children with cSLE in different studies. Cognitive performance can be a challenging clinical feature to efficiently assess. However, research with the Ped-ANAM has produced a Cognitive Performance Score (CPS) that allows for a reliable and efficient estimation of cognitive ability and the presence of cognitive limitations that children with cSLE may show. Compared with traditional neurocognitive assessment tools, Ped-ANAM-CPS offers a promising alternative to overcome the difficulties that practitioners previously faced.