Objectives Fatigue is one of the most common and debilitating symptoms experienced by patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Previous studies revealed the association of fatigue with various SLE and non-SLE-related factors.
This study aims to explore the prevalence of fatigue and the factors that are associated with fatigue experienced by SLE patients in an outpatient rheumatology clinic setting. Design Prospective, observational study using a sample of convenience.
Setting Outpatient rheumatology clinic at a tertiary care centre. Participants Consecutive subjects with SLE presenting for their outpatient visits enrolled in the ongoing Institutional Review Board-approved 'Pathogenesis and Natural History of SLE' protocol.
Primary and secondary outcome measures Disease activity and organ damage accrual were measured by Safety of Estrogens in Lupus Erythematosus: National Assessment Version of the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SELENA-SLEDAI) and Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics/American College of Rheumatology Damage Index (SLICC/ACR DI), respectively. Fatigue was measured by the self-reported Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), and a score of ≥4 was used to define clinically significant fatigue.
BMJ Open published a clinical update in Research Highlights on 01 Apr 2026.
The item focuses on Factors associated with fatigue in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus in an outpatient tertiary care setting: a cross-sectional cohort study.
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