[Systemic lupus erythematosus].

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the classical systemic autoimmune disease. Its prevalence is slightly below 1:1,000 in women and 10-fold lower in men. Typically, the disease manifests in women of childbearing age. While severe untreated SLE used to be a fatal disease, prognosis has improved stepwise with corticosteroids, cyclophosphamide and novel therapies. Deaths directly related to SLE are uncommon nowadays but infections, thromboses and accelerated atherosclerosis cause significant problems. The current review presents the state of the art in managing SLE patients.