Less disease severity and favorable prognosis are associated with postmenopausal systemic lupus erythematosus patients.

The aim of this study is to characterize the clinical manifestations of postmenopausal systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients. Of the 699 SLE inpatients, 20 postmenopausal and 70 menstruous SLE patients were evaluated and compared for the clinical manifestations. The mean age of onset was 55.05 years (range from 42 to 66) with a peak of 50-60 in postmenopausal lupus patients. The average time from SLE onset to diagnosis was 2.18 years. Arthritis was the most frequent initial manifestation in the postmenopausal group. Other common clinical manifestations and laboratory abnormalities include lassitude, fever, alopecia, malar rash, cardiac impairment and weight loss, and elevated ESR, decreased C3, ANA >or= 1:80, hypergammaglobulinemia and anti-RNP antibody positive. Compared with menstruous lupus patients, postmenopausal patients were more likely to have weight loss (P < 0.01), myalgia and myasthenia (P < 0.01), and less likely to have malar rash (P < 0.05), renal involvement (P < 0.01), leukocytopenia (P < 0.05) and positive ANA (P < 0.01). Thus, less disease severity and favorable prognosis were associated with postmenopausal SLE patients. Misdiagnosis and missed diagnosis were easy to make with their non-specific symptoms with fewer features suggestive of diagnosis.