[Subgroups of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus]

As a result of a careful study of 150 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) they could be distributed in 8 clinico-immunologic groups of the disease. Group I included patients with lupus nephritis manifesting by the nephrotic syndrome, group II patients with systemic vasculitis, group III patients with CNS injuries, group IV was made up of patients with discoid lupus, group V of patients with the prevailing damage to the respiratory organs, group VI of patients with hematologic disorders, group VII of patients with generalized visceral SLE, and group VIII included patients with generalized "peripheral" SLE. It was established on HLA typing that on the whole the patients with SLE manifested the increased frequency of HLAA11, B7, B35, DR2 and DR3 antigens. The patients' groups differed in primary carriership of certain antigens. Group I demonstrated a significant increase of the frequency of HLAA9, B13 and DR3, group II of HLADR2, group III of HLAB7, B12 and DR2, group IV of HLAB12, B13 and DR3, group V of HLAA1 and B8, group VII of HLADR1, and group VIII of HLAB35 and DR3. Group VI which was not numerous did not show any clinicogenetic association. The clinicoimmunologic polymorphism can be partially due to the genetic heterogeneity of certain patients' groups with SLE.