TY - JOUR
T1 - Undiagnosed systemic lupus erythematosus in a cohort of infertile women
AU - Geva, Eli
AU - Lerner-Geva, Liat
AU - Burke, Michael
AU - Vardinon, Nurit
AU - Lessing, Joseph B.
AU - Amit, Ami
PY - 2004/5
Y1 - 2004/5
N2 - Problem: Systemic lupus erythematosous (SLE) is a chronic disease with a broad spectrum of clinical and immunological manifestations, therefore, this condition may be frequently misdiagnosed. The current study was conducted to determine the prevalence of undiagnosed SLE among a cohort of infertile women. Method of study: Screening was performed using sequential (two stage) testing, which included a self-completed questionnaire followed by an antinuclear antibody (ANA) test. The Liang screening questionnaire was distributed to 143 consecutive infertile patients, aged 24-42 years (mean, 33.6 ± 4.7 years), who were receiving in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment. Patients who completed the questionnaire with three or more positive answers, were sent for ANA testing; those who tested positive (≥1:40) were referred to the Clinical Immunology Unit for anti-double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) antibody test and clinical assessment. Results: A total of 136 women (95.1%) completed the questionnaire. Thirteen patients (9.6%) answered yes to three or more questions. Of these, five patients (3.7%) were ANA-positive and two (1.5%) had undiagnosed SLE. Conclusions: A 1.5% prevalence of undiagnosed SLE was found in our cohort of infertile women. Additional investigations should be performed as to the role of SLE screening in infertile female population; a high-risk group with regard to ovulation induction treatments.
AB - Problem: Systemic lupus erythematosous (SLE) is a chronic disease with a broad spectrum of clinical and immunological manifestations, therefore, this condition may be frequently misdiagnosed. The current study was conducted to determine the prevalence of undiagnosed SLE among a cohort of infertile women. Method of study: Screening was performed using sequential (two stage) testing, which included a self-completed questionnaire followed by an antinuclear antibody (ANA) test. The Liang screening questionnaire was distributed to 143 consecutive infertile patients, aged 24-42 years (mean, 33.6 ± 4.7 years), who were receiving in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment. Patients who completed the questionnaire with three or more positive answers, were sent for ANA testing; those who tested positive (≥1:40) were referred to the Clinical Immunology Unit for anti-double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) antibody test and clinical assessment. Results: A total of 136 women (95.1%) completed the questionnaire. Thirteen patients (9.6%) answered yes to three or more questions. Of these, five patients (3.7%) were ANA-positive and two (1.5%) had undiagnosed SLE. Conclusions: A 1.5% prevalence of undiagnosed SLE was found in our cohort of infertile women. Additional investigations should be performed as to the role of SLE screening in infertile female population; a high-risk group with regard to ovulation induction treatments.
KW - Infertility
KW - Ovulation induction
KW - Reproduction
KW - Screening
KW - Systemic lupus erythematosus
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=2942654762&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/j.1600-0897.2004.00165.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1600-0897.2004.00165.x
M3 - ???researchoutput.researchoutputtypes.contributiontojournal.article???
AN - SCOPUS:2942654762
SN - 1046-7408
VL - 51
SP - 336
EP - 340
JO - American Journal of Reproductive Immunology
JF - American Journal of Reproductive Immunology
IS - 5
ER -