COMPREHENSIVE COMPARISON OF CURRENT GUIDELINES IN THE MANAGEMENT OF SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS IN CHILDREN, WITH A FOCUS ON LUPUS NEPHRITIS

Background/Aims Lupus nephritis (LN) is a common complication of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); LN affects 50-60% of those with a diagnosis of childhood-SLE (cSLE). Currently one set of paediatric recommendations exists for the diagnosis and treatment of LN, published by the Single Hub and Access point for Paediatric Rheumatology in Europe (SHARE). This paper compares SHARE recommendations against two current sets of adult guidelines, published by the British Society of Rheumatology (BSR) and the European Alliance of associations for Rheumatology (EULAR). This paper aims to identify similarities and differences between the three sets of guidelines, and to evaluate the evidence base used to formulate them. Methods Paediatric SHARE recommendations were recorded within a spreadsheet. The recommendations were separated into recommendations for diagnosis and recommendations for treatment. The BSR paper was then examined for equivalent guidelines. The evidence level was recorded for each guideline. In the second phase, the EULAR 2019 guidelines were assessed for corresponding guidelines to the SHARE recommendations. EULAR levels of evidence were recorded. A Likert score of similarity (0-10) was assigned to each trio of guidelines (the trio consisting of one each from SHARE, BSR and EULAR). If a comparable guideline couldn't be found in either the BSR or EULAR papers, this is made clear in the table. Results When comparing six diagnostic SHARE recommendations for paediatric LN with equivalent BSR and EULAR guidelines, the Likert similarity score ranged between 0-9. Only 50% of the 20 treatment SHARE recommendations had a Likert score >= 5 with their equivalent BSR and EULAR guidelines. Three SHARE treatment recommendations had no comparable guidelines, these are clearly identified in the results tables. All SHARE recommendations were based on level 3 or 4 evidence. Level 3 evidence comes from descriptive studies, whilst level 4 evidence comes from expert opinion and is considered the lowest level of evidence. Conclusion The quantity of differences noted in this paper leads to questioning whether transitional guidelines should be developed for care of young adults with LN to ensure safe transition as they move from paediatric to adult medical care. LN is a chronic condition that will impact a child's entire life. Optimising care from as early in life as possible and continuing this into the future is essential to maximising quality of life and reducing adverse outcomes associated with renal involvement. Disclosure J.A. Day: None. M.W. Beresford: None.