- Hanly JG, McCurdy G, Fougere L, et al. Neuropsychiatric events in systemic lupus erythematosus: Attribution and clinical significance. J Rheumatol 2004;31:2156–62.
- Zaidman CM, Seelig MJ, Baker JC, et al. Detection of peripheral nerve pathology: comparison of ultrasound and MRI. Neurology 2013;80:1634–40.
- Kerasnoudis A, Woitalla D, Gold R, et al. Sarcoid neuropathy: correlation of nerve ultrasound, electrophysiological and clinical findings. J Neurol Sci 2014;347:129–36.
- Bortoluzzi A, Silvagni E, Furini F. Peripheral nervous system involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus: a review of the evidence Clin Exp Rheumatol 2019;37:146–55.
Background
What do we already know about this topic?
- Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune connective tissue disease with multisystem involvement, including the central and peripheral nervous systems.1
- Polyneuropathy is the most frequent subtype of peripheral nerve involvement in SLE.
- Nerve conduction study (NCS) detects functional changes in nerves.
- Neuromuscular ultrasonography (NMUS) detects functional morphological changes in nerves.
How was this study conducted?
- This observational cross-sectional study examined 37 patients with SLE, and 18 healthy controls.
- 5 nerves in each patient were examined bilaterally with NMUS, and the cross-sectional area (CSA) of each nerve at certain sites was estimated.
- Mean CSA at each site was statistically analysed and compared between groups