American College of Rheumatology criteria in early onset (< 50 yrs) vs late onset (≥ 50 yrs) SLE.
| Early Onset | Late Onset | p | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mean no. of ACR criteria met | 5.98 ± 1.68 | 5.24 ± 1.44 | 0.007* |
| Malar rash | 813 (63.9) | 72 (51.1) | 0.002* |
| Renal | 613 (49.0) | 33 (24.1) | < 0.0001* |
| Proteinuria | 252 (80.3) | 6 (37.5) | < 0.0001* |
| Neurological | 130 (11.0) | 6 (4.3) | 0.01* |
| Hematologic | 1010 (77.9) | 102 (68.0) | 0.006* |
| Immunologic | 1128 (86.3) | 118 (79.7) | 0.006* |
| Serositis | 442 (36.1) | 45 (32.1) | 0.2 |
| Pleuritis/pleural effusion | 209 (76.8) | 25 (73.5) | 0.4 |
| Seizures | 46 (58.2) | 1 (20.0) | 0.1 |
| Psychosis | 29 (37.7) | 1 (25.0) | 0.5 |
| Hemolytic anemia | 111 (21.3) | 8 (13.1) | 0.09 |
| Discoid rash | 183 (15.4) | 24 (17.9) | 0.3 |
| Photosensitivity | 676 (54.2) | 77 (55.0) | 0.5 |
| Arthritis | 1041 (79.8) | 125 (83.9) | 0.1 |
| Pericarditis | 116 (43.8) | 15 (45.4) | 0.5 |
| Cellular casts | 152 (50.2) | 11 (64.7) | 0.2 |
| Oral/nasal ulcerations | 668 (53.4) | 80 (58.0) | 0.2 |
| Lupus inhibitor/anticoagulant | 52 (19.3) | 8 (27.6) | 0.2 |
| False-positive VDRL | 19 (6.9) | 4 (13.3) | 0.2 |
| Thrombocytopenia | 171 (31.8) | 21 (33.9) | 0.4 |
| Lymphopenia | 385 (69.7) | 46 (70.8) | 0.5 |
↵* Statistically significant. ACR: American College of Rheumatology; VDRL: Venereal Disease Research Laboratory.