Figure 4.

Interrelationship among the candidate’s short-term goals and between the short- and long-term goals.

Each black circle represents a patient meeting “A” at 5 years in Figure 4(a) and “B” at 5 years in Figure 4(b). Each white circle represents a patient not meeting each criterion. The number represents the case number.

“A” was defined as SLEDAI-2K = 0 and PSL ⩽5 mg/day, “B” as proteinuria ⩽0.2 g/day, normal serum Cr level, and PSL ⩽5 mg/day. DORIS-R was defined as clinical SLEDAI-2K = 0, Evaluator’s Global Assessment <0.5 (0–3), and PSL ⩽5 mg/day with a stable dose of antimalarials, immunosuppressants, or biologic agents. ER was defined as an EDD score of ⩽1 and IR as a negative result in all stained samples. CR was defined as proteinuria ⩽0.4 g/day, normal urinary sediment, serum Alb level ⩾3.5 g/dl, and normal serum Cr levels.

Owing to the retrospective study design, data on the Evaluator’s Global Assessment were unavailable and thus omitted from the evaluation.

Alb, albumin; Cr, creatinine; CR, complete remission; DORIS-R, definitions of remission in SLE remission; EDD, electron-dense deposit; ER, electron microscopy remission; IR, immunofluorescence remission; PSL, prednisolone; SLEDAI-2K, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index 2000.