Psychiatric distress in systemic lupus erythematosus outpatients.

A belief exists that systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients have more psychiatric symptoms than patients with most other medical illnesses and that they often are as psychiatrically disturbed as psychiatric patient groups. These beliefs did not prove to be true for SLE outpatients. Twenty-two outpatients with SLE, 81 general medical outpatients, and 40 psychiatric outpatients were screened with psychometrically validated self-report instruments designed to assess psychiatric symptoms and stress. The SLE outpatients' psychiatric symptoms and stresses were much more similar to those reported by general medical outpatients, rather than by psychiatric outpatients, except in a few areas, and SLE patients were significantly less distressed than psychiatric patients in all areas except those relating directly to their SLE.