Prognosis of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus in the Intensive Care Unit

Introduction: Identification of risk factors for mortality has enabled improving the treatment of critically ill patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. Objective: To describe clinical characteristics and prognoses of critically ill patients with systemic lupus erythematosus admitted to an intensive care unit. Method: Prospective, observational cohort study. A total of 207 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus admitted between January 2011 and January 2016 were included. Results: During the study period, 3,215 critically ill patients were admitted to the intensive care unit, out of which 207 (6.4%) were identified as having systemic lupus erythematosus after being evaluated by an intensivist. The multivariate analysis identified the presence of organ failure (cardiovascular, liver, neurological) and serum lactate levels > 2 mmoL/L at admission or within the first 24 hours of intensive care unit stay as the main factors associated with increased mortality. Conclusions: A relevant observation was that neurological failure and liver failure were associated with higher mortality risk at 28 days, without reports similar to these findings being identified.