Secondary amenorrhea in a cohort of Egyptian systemic lupus erythematosus patients

Aim of the work: To detect the frequency of secondary amenorrhea in a cohort of Egyptian systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients and to identify potentially related key-players.Patients and methods: The medical records of 140 adult SLE patients above 18 and less than 40 years were revised regarding clinical characteristics, immunological features and medications received. The SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI) and damage index (SLICC-DI) were recorded. Patients were divided into two groups: patients who developed secondary amenorrhea and those having normal menstrual cycles.Results: The mean age of the patients was 26.8 +/- 5.7 years, the median disease duration was 3.5 years. The patients had renal involvement in 69.3%, neuropsychiatric in 23.6% and cardiac in 37.9%. Cyclophosphamide (CYC) was received by 52.1% and steroids by 139 patients. Secondary amenorrhea was found in 44 patients (31.4%); 36 (81.8%) of them were <= 32 years old. Patients with secondary amenorrhea had a higher frequency of positive anti-double stranded deoxyribonucleic acid (ds-DNA) antibodies (75% vs 50%; p = 0.04) and a shorter disease duration (median 2 years vs 4.5 years; p = 0.005). Lupus nephritis, renal failure, neuropsychiatric manifestations, cardiac involvement and receiving CYC and high-dose steroids tended to be more frequent in those with secondary amenorrhea compared to those without. The median SLICC-DI was higher in those with amenorrhea compared to those without (p = 0.2)Conclusion: Cyclophosphamide is not the only key-player for the development of secondary amenorrhea in SLE; other factors as the shorter disease duration, presence of autoantibodies and major organ involvements may be implicated. (C) 2019 Egyptian Society of Rheumatic Diseases. Publishing services provided by Elsevier B.V.