Table 1

Demographic, clinical and laboratory variables of SLE cases and age- and gender-matched healthy controls

VariableSLE patients (n=27)Controls (n=22)p Value
Age (years), mean (SD)41.5 (14.1)38.5 (9.3)0.56
Female26 (96.3)19 (86.3)0.96
Caucasian17(63.0)20 (91.0)0.20
BP systolic (mm Hg)131 (103, 144)119 (114, 127)0.78
BP diastolic (mm Hg)76 (66, 86)77 (69, 80)0.84
AHT therapy12 (44.0)0 (0)0.002
BMI (kg/m2)25.7 (21.5, 28.5)25.1 (23.1, 30.8)0.42
WC (cm)80 (74, 91.6)80 (72, 93.5)0.86
Total cholesterol (mmol/l)5.2 (4.6, 6.7)5.54 (4.83, 6.87)0.54
HDL-cholesterol (mmol/l)1.33 (1.15, 1.61)1.66 (1.46, 1.78)0.06
LDL-cholesterol (mmol/l)2.71 (1.92, 3.6)3.01 (2.70, 3.58)0.35
Triglycerides (mmol/l)1.36 (0.90, 1.87)0.88 (0.64, 1.00)0.01
Lipid-lowering therapy3 (11)0 (0)0.18
Glucose (mmol/l)4.40 (4.1, 5.0)4.9 (4.8, 5.1)0.05
Diabetes2 (7.4)0 (0)0.28
Family history of CVD10 (43.5)4 (18.2)0.09
MetS11 (40.7)1/15 (6.7)0.03
Fasting insulin (mU/l)16.3 (12.4, 22.9)14.0 (12.2, 20.6)0.55
HOMA2-IR2.3 (1.9, 3.0)2.0 (1.8, 2.9)0.50
Adiponectin (mg/l)3.57 (2.46, 5.90)2.93 (2.42, 3.60)0.12
hsCRP (mg/l)2.4 (0.5, 5.1)0.51 (0.26, 2.83)0.09
  • Unless otherwise stated, values are n (%) or median (IQR).

  • AHT, anti-hypertensive; BMI, body mass index; BP, blood pressure; CVD, cardiovascular disease; HDL, high-density lipoprotein; HOMA2-IR, homoeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance; hsCRP, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein; LDL, low-density lipoprotein; MetS, metabolic syndrome; SLE, systemic lupus erythematosus; WC, waist circumference.