Systemic Lupus Erythematosus in a Patient with Psoriasis During PUVA Treatment
January 1979
in “
Archives of Dermatology
”
Studysummary This case report suggests that PUVA treatment may have played a role in triggering systemic lupus erythematosus in a 23-year-old woman with psoriasis. Our plain-language summary of this paper — not a Tressless recommendation.
A 23-year-old woman with psoriasis developed systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) during treatment with psoralen-ultraviolet-A (PUVA). Her condition was marked by symptoms such as an erythematous rash, hair loss, nephritis, splenomegaly, seizures, and coma. High titers of serum antinuclear antibodies and hypocomplementemia were observed, although antibodies to native or ultraviolet-irradiated DNA were not found. The study suggested that the PUVA treatment might have played a role in the onset of SLE, although the link between psoriasis and lupus could have been coincidental.
