Neonatal lupus erythematosus: our local experience.

INTRODUCTION: Neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE) presents clinically with either cutaneous lesions or cardiac involvement and is related to the transplacental passage of anti-Ro antibodies from mother to foetus. We report a series of 10 cases seen at the National Skin Centre between 1990 and 1998 including a pair of siblings. CLINICAL PICTURE: The female to male ratio was 2.3:1 and most presented with rash between 3 to 5 weeks of life while 4 had lesions at birth. Four of the 9 mothers had SLE, one was diagnosed to have a lupus-like illness, 2 had Sjogren's syndrome and the remaining two had very high ANA titres but the final diagnosis was uncertain. OUTCOME: The rash resolved spontaneously by 3 to 6 months of age.