Prevention of lupus nephritis in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus receiving treatment with hydroxychloroquine

Abstract

Introduction: Lupus is a chronic autoimmune systemic pathology; lupus nephritis is the
result of renal involvement of systemic lupus erythematosus and is the main cause of renal
failure in this group of patients. Hydroxychloroquine is an antimalarial drug with efficacy
in several pathologies such as coagulopathies, diabetes mellitus, infectious pathologies,
neoplasms, as well as autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, Sjogren's
syndrome and systemic lupus erythematosus. Lupus nephritis is one of the most serious
consequences of SLE, and HCQ helps to recover the glomerular filtration rate and also
reduces the risk of progression to end-stage renal disease. Objective: To analyze the
prevention of lupus nephritis in patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus receiving
treatment with Hydroxychloroquine. Materials and methods: A search were carried out
in Scielo, PubMed and ScienceDirect with keywords that appear in the Health Sciences
descriptor (DeCS) and in Medical Subject Heading (MeSH), articles that met the
inclusion criteria were used, and then proceeded to search for the journal in which they
were published in Scimago. Conclusions: The administration of hydroxychloroquine is
indicated in patients with SLE, as well as in patients with lupus nephritis, since it
decreases the risk of progress towards end-stage renal disease, as well as recovers the
glomerular filtration rate. This drug has immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory
activity, and helps prevent the development of lupus nephritis in patients with SLE.