Renal involvement in children with systemic lupus erythematosus

Abstract

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by highly diverse clinical manifestations and the presence in the serum of a variety of autoantibodies reacting with different cell components. The skin, joints, lungs, heart, kidneys, nervous system, and other organs are involved. The role of autoantibodies in the pathogenesis of the disease is subject to debate. Certain autoantibodies, such as those reacting with cell surface determinants or circulating proteins, are directly responsible for specific clinical manifestations of the disease. The clinical course of the disease is characterized by flares, periods of chronic disease, and periods of remissions (Fig. 1).