Lupus cystitis: unusual cause of renal failure in systemic lupus erythematosus

Abstract

A 42-year-old woman presented with chronic fever, abdominal pain, intermittent loose stools and dysuria for 3 months. She had recently developed acute dyspnoea with acute kidney injury. She was found to have a contracted, thick-walled bladder with bilateral hydroureteronephrosis. She underwent bilateral percutaneous nephrostomies, following which her renal function recovered. She satisfied the clinical and immunological features of the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics criteria for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). She was initiated on immunosuppression. Lupus cystitis with a contracted bladder is an uncommon presentation of SLE.