Compared with adults with SLE (aged 25-44), young adults with SLE (aged 18-24; YA-SLE)
have similar rates of serious infection-related hospitalization (SIH), according to a study
published in Lupus Science & Medicine. Additionally, pleuritis and lupus nephritis were
linked with higher SIH in YA-SLE. Researchers utilized the National Inpatient Sample to
assess the epidemiology and outcomes of SIH for five common infections in SLE: opportu-
nistic, pneumonia, sepsis, skin and soft tissue, and urinary tract. The rate of SIH in YA-SLE
compared with adults with SLE and with young adults without SLE (YA-no SLE) was
the primary outcome. More than 1.7 million hospital admissions with SLE in patients aged
18 and older were identified. In YA-SLE and adults with SLE (15.0% vs 14.5%, P=0.12),
rates of SIH were similar but significantly higher than in the YA-no SLE group (4.2%,
P<0.001). Sepsis, followed by pneumonia, was the most common diagnosis in patients with
SLE with SIH.
