THE FREQUENCY AND SPECTRUM OF LESIONS OF THE CENTRAL AND PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM IN PATIENTS WITH SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS, THE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE COURSE OF THE DISEASE

Stepaniuk T.V.¹, Shevchuk S.V.²

• ¹Vinnytsia National Medical University named after М.І. Pirogov
• ²Research Institute of Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities (NNLK) of the Vinnytsia National Medical University named after М.І. Pirogov

Summary. Theeffects of the nervous system in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are quite frequent and diverse and may appear both at the onset of the disease and many years after its onset. The causes and mechanisms of the development of these clinical manifestations remain unexplored. Purpose: to study the prevalence and spectrum of lesions of the central and peripheral nervous system in patients with SLE and to evaluate their relationship with the clinical course of the disease. Materials and methods. 96 patients with SLE were examined, the average age of the patients was 37.5±0.9 years, the duration of the disease was 6.2±0.4 years. All patients were examined by a neurologist and a psychiatrist, in addition, the following scales were used to assess the neurological condition of patients: Zung’s depression self-assessment scale, Spielberger’s anxiety scale, SMOL, Montreal scale of cognitive function assessment (MoCA), visual and auditory memory tests. Results. Damage to the central nervous system (CNS) occurred in 69.8% of patients, while peripheral damage occurred in 36.5% of patients. Of the lesions of the CNS, cognitive dysfunction, anxiety disorders, headache and depression, PNS — polyneuropathy were most often detected. Lesions of the nervous system are associated with high activity of the inflammatory process according to SLEDAI and SLICC/DI damage index, with a long duration of the disease and female sex, and are not related to the age of the patients. Conclusions: Lesions of the nervous system in patients with SLE can occur at any stage of the development of the disease, increase depending on the length of the disease and are associated with the total activity index of SLEDAI and the index of damage to internal organs.