[A cross-sectional study on application of glucocorticoid in systemic lupus erythematosus patients].

Objective To explore the status of glucocorticoid application in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in China. Methods Epidemiological survey was used. The SLE patients who met the 1997 classification criteria of American College of Rheumatology were enrolled. The usage of glucocorticoid and related adverse reactions were recorded and analyzed. Results A total of 400 SLE patients were enrolled, including 35 men and 365 women. The average age was (37.4±14.0) years old, and the average duration of disease was (6.7±5.8) years. There were 310 patients using glucocorticoid as maintenance. Sixty-one percent (n=244) patients started using medium dose (prednisone 30- 5-10 mg/d groupwas longer[(29.9±3.3) months]. Patients with involvement of internal organs had a higher tendency to use 60-100 mg/d prednisone or pulse-dose therapy in the initial treatment, nevertheless these two groups had no difference of maintenance dosage. Among all 400 patients, 62 patients withdrew glucocorticoid, including 17 patients with disease remission (4.3%), 44 by self-withdrawal and one with adverse reaction. Conclusion In China, the medium dosage of glucocorticoid is the most common initial treatment in patients with SLE.Prednisone 2.5-5 mg/d was the most common choicefor maintenance therapy. Currently, the proportion of glucocorticoid withdrawal remains low in SLE patients achieving remission. Key words: Lupus erythematosus, systemic; Glucocorticoids; Initial treatment; Maintenance treatment