title: Clinical and subclinical pancreatitis in a cohort of patients diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate amylase and lipase levels in a cohort of patients diagnosed with SLE, identify patients with subclinical and clinical pancreatitis and investigate factors associated.
  
  
  METHODS
  Demographic, clinical and laboratory data were collected, including recent clinical symptoms possibly related to pancreatitis, use of medication, disease activity (SLEDAI-2K), and serum amylase and lipase levels. Patients with pancreatic enzyme levels ≥ 1.5 times in excess of the upper limit of normal and/or patients with clinical suspicion of pancreatitis were submitted to abdominal CT or US.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The study included 136 SLE patients aged 33.9 ± 11.2 years. Three patients (2.2%) were diagnosed with clinical pancreatitis and 7 (5.1%) with subclinical pancreatitis. Multiple causal factors were associated with increased enzymes levels such as activity of the disease, drug toxicity, hypertriglyceridemia and chronic kidney failure. Patients with clinical and subclinical pancreatitis (n=10) when compared with pancreatitis-free patients had more SLE active, levels were lower for haemoglobin, platelets and albumin, and higher for triglycerides and AST. Thrombocytopenia, high blood sedimentation rate and hypertriglyceridemia were the only variables associated with pancreatitis in the logistic regression model.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of clinical and subclinical pancreatitis in SLE patients was low and associated with multiple potential factors. The association of thrombocytopenia and pancreatitis in SLE patients requires further studies.
authors.affiliation: Division of Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza, Brazil. mmcmedeiros@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Marta M C
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Medeiros
authors.forename: Geórgea Hermógenes
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Fernandes
authors.forename: Nathália Siqueira Robert
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Pinto
authors.forename: Virginia Angelica
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Silveira
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000681:Amylases / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008049:Lipase / Q000097:blood; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D008049:Lipase; D000681:Amylases