Variability over time and correlates of cholesterol and blood pressure in systemic lupus erythematosus: a longitudinal cohort study

Table 1 Characteristics of patients (n = 1,260)

Characteristic	Number (%) or mean ± SD
Female	1,113 (88.3%)
Menopausal at entry to study^a	224 (20.1%)
Menopausal during follow-up^a	445 (40.0%)
Race: White	880 (73%)
Black	119 (10%)
Asian	113 (9%)
Other	96 (8%)
Age at first clinic visit (years)	35.0 ± 13.6
Disease duration at first clinic visit (years)	4.0 ± 5.0
SLEDAI-2K at first clinic visit^b	9.6 ± 7.7
Age at entry to study (years)	35.4 ± 13.7
Disease duration at entry to study (years)	4.4 ± 6.0
SLEDAI-2K at entry to study^b	8.7 ± 7.0
Hypertension at entry to study^c	190 (15.1%)
Hypercholesterolemia at entry to study^e	528 (41.9%)
Diabetes at entry to study^f	30 of 1,223 (2.5%)^d
Smoker at entry to study^g	247 of 1,235 (20.0%)^d
Corticosteroid use at entry to study	763 of 1,257 (60.7%)^d
Antimalarial use at entry to study^h	462 of 1,256 (36.8%)^d
Immunosuppressive use at entry to studyⁱ	259 of 1,255 (20.6%)^d

SD, standard deviation.
^aMenopause defined as a minimum of 12 months of amenorrhea, irrespective of cause.
^bScores range from 0 to 105, with higher scores indicating more-active disease.
^cDiastolic BP ≥ 90 or systolic BP ≥ 140 mm Hg.
^dFor these variables, data were incomplete for a small number of patients. The denominator of the fractions in the second column is the total number of patients from whom the percentage was calculated.
^eHypercholesterolemia was defined as cholesterol > 5.2 mmol/L.
^fDiabetes was defined as fasting plasma glucose > 7.0 mmol/L or diabetes therapy.
^gSmoking one or more cigarettes per day.
^hAntimalarials include chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine.
ⁱImmunosuppressives include methotrexate, azathioprine, mycophenolate mofetil,
cyclosporine, and cyclophosphamide.

ISSN: 1478-6362