Childhood systemic lupus erythematosus, vasculitis, and rheumatic fever and neonatal lupus

Studies on the long-term outcome of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus not only give us survival figures but also uncover flaws in our treatment strategies and reveal both disease-associated and other factors that affect prognosis. Among the latter, compliance with treatment and socioeconomic factors are noteworthy. The pathogenesis of neonatal lupus is under active investigation, and new approaches are being developed. This review also draws attention to a number of vasculitis syndromes that are common in adults but very rarely reported in children. Poststreptococcal reactive arthritis has been described as a new entity; however, such patients should probably receive the same attention as patients with rheumatic fever to avoid recurrences of the disease and cardiac sequelae.