Affiliation:
1. Departmet of Clinical pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Assuit University, Assiut, Egypt
2. Department of Rheumatology, Rehabilitation and Physical Medicine, Assuit University, Assiut, Egypt
Abstract
Abstract
Aim
To investigate the value of red blood cell distribution width (RDW) as a biomarker of activity in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and its relationship with disease activity and severity.
Patients and methods
A total of 50 patients with SLE and 46 healthy controls were included. Complete blood count (CBC), antinuclear antibodies, antidouble-stranded DNA antibodies, complement 3, systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity index, and Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics/American college of rheumatology damage index were assessed in patients with SLE.
Results
The mean age of SLE was 31.12 ± 8.68 years, and the majority of studied participants were females. RDW was significantly higher in patients with SLE compared with healthy controls (15.42 ± 2 vs. 13.57 ± 0.78; P=0.000). In patients with active SLE, the RDW was significantly higher than in those with inactive disease (15.86 ± 2.25 vs. 14.38 ± 1.78; P=0.032). At a cutoff value of greater than 14.6, RDW can indicate active SLE disease with sensitivity and specificity of 65.7 and 60.0%, respectively. The area under the curve was 0.692, with P=0.033.
Conclusion
The RDW was significantly high in patients with SLE compared with healthy controls, and these high levels were associated with disease activity.