Familial systemic lupus erythematosus in males.

Several families in which systemic lupus erythematosus predominates in males are presented. The disease primarily manifested itself in the sons and in the male parents. Females in some of the families had other autoimmune diseases such as idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura or symptoms suggestive of a lupus diathesis. It is suggested that the sons inherited the disease from their fathers in these families. The disease in the patients had some similarity to the disease in BXSB mice.