TY - JOUR T1 - Belimumab in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus — What Can Be Learned from Longterm Observational Studies? JF - The Journal of Rheumatology JO - J Rheumatol SP - 192 LP - 193 DO - 10.3899/jrheum.131378 VL - 41 IS - 2 AU - ANDERS A. BENGTSSON Y1 - 2014/02/01 UR - http://www.jrheum.org/content/41/2/192.abstract N2 - Most patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) do not have optimal disease control1. Despite the available SLE treatments of today, patients still have flares, and some low-grade disease activity can be seen in many patients when followed over time. As a consequence of both chronic inflammation and use of corticosteroids, irreversible organ damage such as osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease may occur. In fact, disease activity over time has a great influence on organ damage and other outcomes2,3, and it is obvious that sustained control of disease activity is desirable in SLE. One such possibility of achieving longterm disease control and prevention of flare is published in the current issue of The Journal4, where data are presented from an observational study in patients with SLE treated with belimumab for 7 years.Tumor necrosis factor blockers and other biological therapies have been used in rheumatoid arthritis and spondyloarthropathies for many years now, and this has dramatically changed the rheumatologic landscape. Meanwhile, phase III placebo-controlled randomized clinical trials (RCT) of different biologic therapies in the treatment of SLE have been unsuccessful — until the BLISS studies. The BLISS-525 and BLISS-766 studies are RCT in which treatment with belimumab showed significant effects on disease activity in SLE, and these studies formed the … Address correspondence to Dr. Bengtsson. E-mail: Anders.Bengtsson{at}med.lu.se ER -