[Electrocardiographic and echocardiographic abnormalities in systemic lupus erythematosus : Initial data from...

Limited data are available on cardiac manifestations in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in Cameroon. The aim of this study was to report on electrocardiographic and echocardiographic abnormalities in this population.

A cross-sectional study was conducted from October 2023 to May 2024 at the Yaoundé Central Hospital, involving patients followed up for SLE satisfying the ACR/EULAR 2019 criteria, paired with healthy subjects. They underwent electrocardiographic and echocardiographic examinations. Frequencies of abnormalities were compared using Fisher's exact test. The significance threshold was 0.05.

We included 55 SLE patients (94.5% female) with a mean age of 39 (10) years, and 55 matched control subjects. Clinically, 10 (18.2%) SLE patients presented with functional cardiac signs. Electrocardiographic and echographic abnormalities accounted for 29.1% and 43.6% of patients, respectively, with frequencies significantly higher than those of controls (10.9% and 7.3%, respectively). These included sinus tachycardia (14.5%), ST elevation (14.5%), and T-wave inversion (16.3%) on electrocardiography; pericardial effusion (25.5%), mitral insufficiency (23.6%), aortic insufficiency (20%), and pulmonary hypertension (14.5%) on echocardiography.

Electrocardiographic and echocardiographic abnormalities are common, affecting one-third and two-fifths respectively of SLE patients in our sample. They are usually asymptomatic, calling for screening and follow-up, as some can have a long-term prognostic impact.