The mean time from the first detection of proteinuria until kidney biopsy was significantly shorter in the decade from 1990 to 2000 than in the decade from 1980 to 1989. The time in months between the first diagnosis of SLE until the referral to our centre and the kidney biopsy showed no significant differences between the two decades. Results are given as mean (SD) [range]
| 1980–1989 (group I) | 1990–2000 (group II) | p Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| *Time when the diagnosis of SLE was first mentioned (not the first appearance of symptoms); †proteinuria >500 mg/day. | |||
| Time from first diagnosis of SLE* until referral to our centre | 29.2 (27.9) | 32.0 (41.2) | NS |
| [range 11–156] | [range 0–132] | ||
| Time from first diagnosis of SLE until kidney biopsy | 50.3 (52.3) | 39.3 (41.6) | NS |
| [range 0–60] | [range 1–132] | ||
| Time from first detection of proteinuria† until kidney biopsy | 15.4 (15.6) | 3.9 (4.7) | 0.00002 |
| [range 5–60] | [range 1–24] | ||