title: Update on differences between childhood-onset and adult-onset systemic lupus erythematosus.
abstract: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex autoimmune disease and occurs worldwide in both children and adults. The estimated annual incidence among children is 2.22/100,000 and among adults is 23.2/100,000 in the United States. There is increasing understanding about differences in disease manifestations, medication use, and disease severity between those with childhood-onset SLE as compared with adult-onset SLE. Children have a more fulminant disease onset and course than adults with SLE, resulting in two to three times higher mortality. In future years, we anticipate more insight into the genetics between childhood-onset SLE and adult-onset SLE to help delineate the best therapies for both subsets of patients.
authors.forename: Rina
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mina
authors.forename: Hermine I
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Brunner
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male