[Lung involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)--own experience].

Pulmonary disorders in systemic lupus erythematosus are frequent and sometimes they are the first symptoms of the disease. SLE may cause a variety of clinical presentations and pathologic patterns, which can be difficult to diagnose. We observed 11 patients (9 women and 2 men) with pulmonary manifestations of SLE during last 18 years in our department. Mean age of patients was 47.7 +/- 13.4 years. There were no patients with drug induced SLE. Interstitial lung diseases (7/11) acute or chronic and pleural involvement (5/11) were the most frequent clinical presentation. In three cases airway disease presented as reduction of FEV1%VC index was detected. In one case "shrinking lung" syndrome was confirmed by muscle function (diaphragm relaxation time) and lung function tests. Pulmonary hypertension confirmed by echocardiography, was associated with interstitial lung disease or vasculitis. Six cases representing different lung involvement pattern of SLE were described in details.