Table 1.
Baseline demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and healthy controls without plaque or with a history of any plaque at baseline or followup*
| Baseline characteristic | Control subjects
|
SLE patients
|
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No plaque (n = 72) | Any plaque (n = 28) | P† | No plaque (n = 149) | Any plaque (n = 61) | P† | |
| Time to second ultrasound, mean ± SD months | 28.0 ± 10.0 | 29.2 ± 9.7 | NS | 30.6 ± 9.8 | 29.5 ± 8.6 | NS |
| Age, mean ± SD years | 40.5 ± 11.8 | 54.6 ± 10.1 | <0.001 | 39.6 ± 13.5 | 51.9 ± 10.2 | <0.001 |
| History of CAD | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 2 (3.2) | NS |
| History of CVE | 0 | 0 | NS | 9 (6.0) | 4 (6.6) | NS |
| Body mass index, mean ± SD kg/m2 | 23.7 ± 5.1 | 25.3 ± 5.8 | NS | 25.7 ± 5.9 | 28.0 ± 7.1 | 0.03 |
| Family history of CVD | 10 (13.9) | 7 (25) | NS | 31 (20.8) | 23 (37.7) | 0.01 |
| History of hypertension | 6 (8.3) | 10 (35.7) | 0.001 | 41 (27.5) | 25 (41) | 0.06 |
| History of dyslipidemia | 13 (18.1) | 13 (46.4) | 0.004 | 22 (14.8) | 20 (32.7) | 0.003 |
| History of diabetes | 0 | 1 (3.6) | NS | 3 (2.0) | 8 (13.1) | 0.003 |
| Smoking history | ||||||
| Ever smoker | 20 (27.8) | 8 (28.5) | NS | 44 (29.5) | 18 (29.5) | NS |
| Current smoker | 8 (11.1) | 3 (10.7) | NS | 10 (6.7) | 5 (8.1) | NS |
| Ethnicity/race | ||||||
| White | 40 (55.6) | 17 (60.7) | NS | 79 (53) | 25 (41.0) | NS |
| Asian or Pacific Islander | 16 (22.2) | 4 (14.3) | NS | 24 (16.1) | 9 (14.8) | NS |
| African American | 4 (5.5) | 3 (10.7) | NS | 8 (5.4) | 12 (19.7) | 0.001 |
| Hispanic | 9 (12.5) | 3 (10.7) | NS | 32 (21.5) | 9 (14.0) | NS |
| Mixed or other | 3 (4.2) | 1 (3.6) | NS | 6 (4.0) | 6 (9.8) | NS |
| Statins initiated | 1 (1.4) | 5 (17.8) | 0.007 | 13 (8.7) | 8 (13.1) | NS |
| Disease duration, mean ± SD years | NA | NA | NA | 11.4 ± 8.0 | 14.9 ± 11.4 | 0.01 |
| SELENA–SLEDAI, mean ± SD | NA | NA | NA | 3.5 ± 4.0 | 3.9 ± 3.5 | NS |
| SDI score, mean ± SD | NA | NA | NA | 1.2 ± 1.5 | 1.4 ± 2.0 | NS |
| Any aCL antibodies | NA | NA | NA | 59 (39.6) | 17 (27.8) | NS |
| History of glomerulonephritis | NA | NA | NA | 44 (29.7) | 14 (23.0) | NS |
| Baseline medication | ||||||
| Mycophenolate mofetil | NA | NA | NA | 12 (19.7) | 44 (23.3) | NS |
| Hydroxychloroquine | NA | NA | NA | 36 (59.0) | 124 (65.6) | NS |
| Azathioprine | NA | NA | NA | 4 (6.6) | 26 (13.8) | NS |
| Prednisone | ||||||
| Current dose, mean ± SD mg | NA | NA | NA | 4.8 ± 9.1 | 4.3 ± 7.7 | NS |
| 6-month dose, mean ± SD mg | NA | NA | NA | 687.0 ± 1,041.1 | 821.7 ± 1,304.8 | NS |
| Lifetime use >20 gm | NA | NA | NA | 44 (29.5) | 18 (29.5) | NS |
History of coronary artery disease (CAD) was defined as either a history of myocardial infarction (MI) or documented CAD on angiogram or stress test. History of cerebrovascular events (CVE) included transient ischemic attacks (confirmed by a physician) and stroke (confirmed by appropriate imaging). Family history of coronary vascular disease (CVD) was defined as any parental history of MI before age 60 years. Dyslipidemia was defined as any of the following, either alone or in combination: levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol ≥130 mg/dl, total cholesterol ≥200 mg/dl, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ≥40 mg/dl, and/or triglycerides ≥150 mg/dl. Hypertension was defined as use of antihypertensive medication or systolic blood pressure >140 mg Hg or diastolic blood pressure >90 mm Hg. Diabetes mellitus was defined as a fasting glucose level ≥7.0 mmoles/liter (126 mg/dl) or treatment with insulin or an oral hypoglycemic agent. Smokers were designated as subjects who had smoked any cigarettes within the prior 3 months. Race/ethnicity categorization was based on patient self-description. Except where indicated otherwise, values are the number (%) of subjects. NS = not significant; NA = not applicable; SELENA–SLEDAI = Safety of Estrogens in Lupus Erythematosus National Assessment version of the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index; SDI = Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics/American College of Rheumatology Damage Index; aCL = anticardiolipin.
Only P values <0.1 are shown.