TY - JOUR T1 - Invasive Fungal Infections in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus JF - The Journal of Rheumatology JO - J Rheumatol DO - 10.3899/jrheum.111498 SP - jrheum.111498 AU - Marco Ulises Martínez-Martínez AU - David Herrera-van Oostdam AU - Susana Román-Acosta AU - Martín Magaña-Aquino AU - Lourdes Baranda-Cándido AU - Carlos Abud-Mendoza Y1 - 2012/06/15 UR - http://www.jrheum.org/content/early/2012/06/11/jrheum.111498.abstract N2 - Objective Invasive fungal infections (IFI) are catastrophic diseases associated with a high mortality. Relatively few cases of IFI have been described in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and their related factors have not been completely explored. We evaluated factors associated with IFI in patients with SLE. Methods All patients with both IFI and SLE admitted to our hospital in the last 7 years were evaluated and each was compared with 5 hospitalized patients with SLE (controls). Demographic factors, duration of SLE, and treatment in the previous month were compared. Results Sixty patients with SLE were evaluated (10 with IFI and 50 controls). Median age was 29 years. High C-reactive protein levels were associated with IFI, along with other factors such as high disease activity, mechanical ventilation, treatment with antibiotics, hemodialysis, high doses of glucocorticoids (GC), and treatment with mycophenolate mofetil. Mortality was 4 times more frequent in patients with IFI than in SLE patients without the deep fungal infection. Conclusion IFI is a rare infection observed in patients with rheumatic diseases. We describe factors associated with IFI in patients with SLE. IFI is associated with elevated morbidity and mortality. Early diagnosis and treatment are desirable. ER -