Prospective analysis of antiribonucleoprotein antibodies in systemic lupus erythematosus

A prospective analysis of 50 successive patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, seen over a 4-year period, has been completed. 336 sera were examined for the presence of antibody to ribonucleoprotein using a counterimmunoelectrophoresis assay. Antibody was present in the sera of 16% of patients and was detectable in about the same titre throughout the course of the disease. The presence of the antibody did not appear to identify a subgroup of lupus patients with individual clinical characteristics.