Risk factors of systemic lupus erythematosus patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: To investigate the risk factors for the development of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods: The literature related to risk factors for the development of PAH in SLE patients was searched by the computer on China national knowledge infrastructure (CNKI), PubMed, and Embase, and the literature search was limited to the period of library construction to October 2022. Two researchers independently performed literature screening and literature information extracting, including first author, publication time, case collection time, sample size, and study factors, and used the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) to evaluate the quality of the literature. The relationship between each clinical manifestation and laboratory index and the occurrence of PAH in SLE patients was evaluated based on the ratio (OR value) and its 95% CI.

Results: A total of 24 publications were included, including 23 case-control studies and 1 cohort study with NOS ≥ 6, and the overall quality of the literature was high. The risk of PAH was higher in SLE patients who developed Raynaud phenomenon than in those who did not [OR = 2.39, 95% CI (1.91, 2.99), P < .05]; the risk of PAH was higher in SLE patients who were positive for anti-RNP antibodies than in those who were negative for anti-RNP antibodies [OR = 1.77, 95% CI (1.17, 3.2.65), P < .05]; the risk of PAH was higher in SLE patients with interstitial lung lesions than in those without combined interstitial lung lesions [OR = 3.28, 95% CI (2.37, 4.53), P < .05]; the risk of PAH was higher in SLE patients with combined serositis than in those without serositis [OR = 2.28, 95% CI (1.83, 2.84), P < .05]. The risk of PAH was higher in SLE patients with combined pericardial effusion than in those without pericardial effusion [OR = 2.97, 95% CI (2.37, 3.72), P < .05]; the risk of PAH was higher in SLE patients with combined vasculitis than in those without vasculitis [OR = 1.50, 95% CI (1.08, 2.07), P < .05]; rheumatoid factor-positive SLE patients had a higher risk of PAH than those with rheumatoid factor-negative [OR = 1.66, 95% CI (1.24, 2.24), P < .05].

Conclusion: Raynaud phenomenon, vasculitis, anti-RNP antibodies, serositis, interstitial lung lesions, rheumatoid factor, and pericardial effusion are risk factors for the development of PAH in patients with SLE.