Continued Treatment for Lupus May Boost Survival of Patients with End-Stage Kidney Disease

In a finding that could reverse long-standing clinical practice, a study has shown that the close supervision by rheumatologists and the use of immunosuppressant drugs improve the survival of lupus patients with end-stage kidney disease.

“The lupus disease process was thought to become inactive once kidney failure develops,” lead author Anna Broder, MD, assistant professor of medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University in Bronx, NY, said in a statement.

“As a result, patients generally haven’t been encouraged to continue with immunosuppressant medications or to follow up with their rheumatologists after developing end-stage kidney disease. But recent studies have suggested that lupus can indeed remain active after patients start dialysis or receive a kidney transplant.”

“Our research shows for the first time that under-supervising and under-treating these lupus patients was associated with an increased risk of death,” Broder added. The study appeared in the September 1 online edition of the Journal of Rheumatology.

The researchers reviewed the charts of 80 lupus patients with end-stage renal disease who had been started on renal replacement therapy such as kidney dialysis or kidney transplant. Twenty-two of the patients had been seen frequently in rheumatology clinics (two or more visits per year), while the other 58 patients had been followed infrequently (fewer than two visits per year).

Four years after the start of renal replacement therapy, patients who continued to be treated with immunosuppressive medications were less likely to have died compared with patients who took only low doses of prednisone or no medication.

One striking finding that patients receiving no medication were 13 times more likely to have died compared with patients treated with a combination of immunosuppressive therapies.

The study also found that lupus patients who visited their rheumatologist at least twice a year after starting dialysis had significantly higher four-year survival rates compared with patients who went for fewer follow-up visits.

“If these findings are confirmed by future studies,” said Broder, “they may significantly change the way lupus patients with end-stage renal failure are managed while on dialysis or after receiving kidney transplants.”

SourcesContinued Treatment for Lupus May Boost Survival of Those Patients with End-Stage Kidney Disease [Albert Einstein College of Medicine]