Antimalarials for All Lupus Patients
posted in - Medical Updates, - Palmdoc |Hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil) has been used in SLE and RA for quite sometime and given particularly for patients with troubling skin and joint symptom flares. New research suggests that it perhaps should be given for all patients with SLE. Medscape Reports
Use of antimalarial agents can improve survival with systemic lupus erythematosus and should be given to all patients with the disease, according to a report in the January 7th issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism.
During a median follow-up period of 55 months, the mortality rate for non-users of antimalarial drugs was 11.5%, while that of users was just 4.4% (p < 0.001). Further analysis showed that patients who used the drugs for more than 2 years had the lowest mortality per 1000 person-years of follow-up — 0.54 deaths, compared to 3.07 in non-users.
Prior research has suggested that antimalarial therapy can help prevent flare-ups of lupus and reduce overall damage from the disease, Dr. Bernardo A. Pons-Estel, from Hospital Provincial de Rosario, Argentina and co-researchers note.
SLE is common in Malaysia and patients and advocates should consider joining the Persatuan Lupus Malaysia. Plaquenil is a drug to be taken only under medical supervision and the most serious potential adverse effect is retinopathy and hence the need for regular monitoring by an ophthalmologist
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