Early symptoms of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) recalled by 339 SLE patients.

Objective The European League Against Rheumatism and the American College of Rheumatology jointly embarked on a new classification criteria for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) project. Its first phase involved generation of a broad set of items potentially useful for classification of SLE. This study was undertaken to add the patient perspective to an expert Delphi approach and an early patient cohort study. Methods A national cross-sectional study was conducted. A self-report questionnaire was published in the "Schmetterling" (Butterfly), the quarterly journal of the German SLE patient association. Individuals with SLE were asked to anonymously complete the questionnaire, which asked for demographic details, organ manifestations, autoantibodies and symptoms. Results A total of 339 completed questionnaires out of 2498 were returned, a response rate of 13.6%; 83.2% reported they were ANA positive and 81.7% reported joint, 66.1% skin and 33.0% renal involvement. For the time before and in the first year after their SLE diagnosis, the majority reported fatigue (89.4%), joint pain (86.7%), photosensitivity (79.4%) and myalgia (76.1%). Of interest, more than half of the patients reported fever as an early symptom (53.7%). Conclusion For a Caucasian European SLE patient population, the overall characteristics suggest meaningful representation. While many symptoms were reported as expected, the high percentage of patients reporting fever and the significant number of patients with unexpected gastrointestinal complaints are of particular interest. These data add to the information on early SLE symptoms informing the development process of new SLE classification criteria.

People with type 2 diabetes on premixed insulin therapy: how is the daily insulin dose partitioned and are there effects on the metabolic control?

AIM: To investigate the correctness of the recommendation for dose distribution in premixed insulin therapy, with two thirds of daily insulin dose before breakfast and one third of daily insulin dose before dinner. METHODS: The individual insulin dose distribution and metabolic control of people with Type 2 diabetes treated with premixed insulin therapy were studied in a cross sectional study involving 199 patients in a university outpatient department and 2 general practices in 2010. RESULTS: All 199 patients were treated with premixed human insulin. The mean pre-breakfast dose was 57% (min. 32%, max. 83%) and the mean pre-dinner dose 43% (17-67%) of the total daily insulin. A pre-breakfast dose of exactly two thirds of total daily insulin was used by 6.5% (n=13), about two thirds, i. e., 60-70%, was injected by 27.6% of the patients. The diurnal insulin distribution<60%, 60% up to 70% and > 70% pre-breakfast insulin did not make any difference in HbA1c, which was 7.3% (56 mmol/mol) each. CONCLUSION: The quite common recommendation in German and Austrian medical textbooks, that premixed insulin therapy should consists of a dose distribution with two thirds before breakfast and one third before dinner, is not observed in daily practice. Diurnal insulin dose distribution and HbA1c are not associated in this cohort. Novelty statement: The circadian insulin dose distribution of 2/3 before breakfast and 1/3 before dinner could not be confirmed for patients with diabetes type 2 and conventional insulin therapy. No correlation between metabolic control and insulin circadian insulin dose distribution was detected.