Baseline characteristics and outcomes of 107 patients with lupus nephritis
| Baseline characteristics | Overall (n=107) | Non-ESRD (n=92) | ESRD (n=15) | P value |
| Demographics | ||||
| Female, n (%) | 90 (84.1%) | 78 (84.8%) | 12 (80.0%) | 0.704 |
| Age, years | 33 (23–46) | 34 (24–46) | 30 (21–50) | 0.953 |
| SLE duration, months | 3.9 (1.2–83.0) | 2.3 (1.2–82.5) | 54.2 (8.6–94.5) | 0.221 |
| LN duration, months | 5.2 (1.2–39.8) | 3.2 (1.2–39.0) | 23.6 (3.6–53.5) | 0.134 |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 78 (72.9%) | 65 (70.7%) | 13 (86.7%) | 0.346 |
| Diabetes mellitus, n (%) | 15 (14.0%) | 13 (14.1%) | 2 (13.3%) | 0.934 |
| Laboratory examinations | ||||
| Haemoglobin, g/L | 92±17 | 93±17 | 85±14 | 0.101 |
| White cell count, ×109/L | 7.14 (5.06–9.78) | 7.12 (5.02–9.53) | 7.15 (5.64–9.88) | 0.654 |
| Platelets, ×109/L | 169 (131–236) | 166 (130–218) | 205 (132–274) | 0.092 |
| C3, g/L | 0.444 (0.336–0.645) | 0.435 (0.334–0.639) | 0.525 (0.362–0.715) | 0.217 |
| C4, g/L | 0.091 (0.053–0.154) | 0.091 (0.052–0.154) | 0.117 (0.060–0.205) | 0.296 |
| Anti-dsDNA, n (%) | 69 (64.5%) | 61 (66.3%) | 8 (53.3%) | 0.330 |
| Anti-SSA, n (%) | 57 (53.3%) | 49 (53.3%) | 8 (53.3%) | 0.996 |
| Anti-SSB, n (%) | 14 (13.1%) | 13 (14.1%) | 1 (6.7%) | 0.687 |
| Anti-RNP, n (%) | 42 (39.3%) | 33 (35.9%) | 9 (60.0%) | 0.076 |
| Anti-rRNP, n (%) | 27 (25.2%) | 24 (26.1%) | 3 (20.0%) | 0.756 |
| Anti-Smith, n (%) | 29 (27.1%) | 23 (25.0%) | 6 (40.0%) | 0.228 |
| Coombs’ test, n (%) | 34 (31.8%) | 33 (35.9%) | 1 (6.7%) | 0.034 |
| aPL antibodies, n (%) | 22 (20.6%) | 20 (21.7%) | 2 (13.3%) | 0.731 |
| Serum albumin, g/L | 26.1±5.9 | 26.2±6.0 | 25.6±5.7 | 0.720 |
| Proteinuria, g/24 hours | 6.2 (3.7–10.3) | 5.9 (3.4–9.8) | 9.0 (4.9–12.7) | 0.039 |
| Microscopic haematuria, /uL | 162.2 (52.7–526.7) | 180.4 (60.1–561.9) | 73.0 (30.0–381.8) | 0.087 |
| Serum creatinine, μmoI/L | 163 (126–202) | 152 (123–191) | 195 (171–265) | 0.012 |
| eGFR, mL/min/1.73 m2 | 36.6 (27.0–49.4) | 39.3 (28.1–49.7) | 27.3 (24.3–33.4) | 0.008 |
| Disease evaluation | ||||
| SLEDAI | 14 (12–18) | 14 (12–18) | 12 (10–16) | 0.074 |
| Extrarenal SLEDAI | 5 (2-7) | 5 (4-7) | 4 (2-6) | 0.141 |
| Extrarenal organ involvement | 1 (0–1) | 1 (0–2) | 0 (0–1) | 0.388 |
| Histological class, ISN/RPS | 0.965 | |||
| Class III, n (%) | 8 (7.5%) | 7 (7.6%) | 1 (6.7%) | |
| Class IV, n (%) | 69 (64.5%) | 59 (64.1%) | 10 (66.7%) | |
| Class V, n (%) | 2 (1.9%) | 2 (2.2%) | 0 | |
| Class III+V, n (%) | 5 (4.7%) | 4 (4.3%) | 1 (6.6%) | |
| Class IV+V, n (%) | 23 (21.4%) | 20 (21.8%) | 3 (20.0%) | |
| Activity index | 14 (12–17) | 14 (11–17) | 14 (12–15) | 0.815 |
| Chronicity index | 4 (3-5) | 3 (3-5) | 6 (5-8) | 0.000 |
| Treatment | ||||
| Induction therapy, n (%) | ||||
| Methylprednisolone pulses | 76 (71.0%) | 64 (69.6%) | 12 (80.0%) | 0.546 |
| CS+CYC | 82 (76.6%) | 68 (73.9%) | 14 (93.3%) | 0.184 |
| CS+MMF | 12 (11.2%) | 12 (13.0%) | 0 | 0.210 |
| CS+others | 13 (12.2%) | 12 (13.1%) | 1 (6.7%) | |
| Hydroxychloroquine, n (%) | 75 (70.1%) | 65 (70.7%) | 10 (66.7%) | 0.766 |
| ACEI/ARB, n (%) | 54 (50.5%) | 50 (54.3%) | 4 (26.7%) | 0.047 |
| Haemodialysis, n (%) | 7 (6.5%) | 6 (6.5%) | 1 (6.7%) | 0.983 |
| Plasma exchange, n (%) | 4 (3.7%) | 4 (4.3%) | 0 | 0.410 |
| Outcome | ||||
| Follow-up, months | 60 (36–84) | 64 (39–86) | 27 (14–36) | 0.000 |
| Proteinuria after 6 months, g/24 hours | 1.4 (0.4–3.0) | 1.3 (0.4–2.6) | 3.0 (2.0–4.7) | 0.002 |
| CR after 6 months, n (%) | 20 (18.7%) | 19 (20.7%) | 1 (6.7%) | 0.294 |
| PR after 6 months, n (%) | 41 (38.3%) | 41 (44.6%) | 0 | 0.001 |
| NR after 6 months, n (%) | 46 (43.0%) | 32 (34.7%) | 14 (93.3%) | 0.000 |
| Stage 1 CKD, n (%) | 32 (29.9%) | 32 (34.8%) | / | / |
| Stage 2 CKD, n (%) | 32 (29.9%) | 32 (34.8%) | / | / |
| Stage 3 CKD, n (%) | 16 (15.0%) | 16 (17.4%) | / | / |
| Stage 4 CKD, n (%) | 8 (7.5%) | 8 (8.7%) | / | / |
| Death, n (%) | 4 (3.7%) | 4 (4.3%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0.410 |
CS+others of induction therapy included CS+CYC+ MMF, CS+MMF+calcineurin inhibitor (CNI), CS+CNI, CS+MMF+Leflunomide.
ACEI/ARB, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors/angiotensin receptor blockers; aPL, antiphospholipid antibodies; CKD, chronic kidney disease; CR, complete response; CS, corticosteroids; CYC, cyclophosphamide; eGFR, estimated glomerular filtration rate; ESRD, end-stage renal disease; INS/RPS, International Society of Nephrology/Renal Pathology Society; MMF, mycophenolate mofetil; NR, no response; PR, partial response; SLEDAI, SLE Disease Activity Index.