Incidence and risk of arterial and venous thrombotic events in systemic lupus erythematosus patients: a population-based study.

This article focuses on the incidence and risk of arterial thrombotic events (ATE), venous thrombotic events (VTE), and all-cause mortality in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in an Italian cohort from 2010 to 2019, alongside their pharmacotherapy patterns. Using administrative health databases from Lombardy, Italy, the study found that SLE patients had significantly higher incidence rates and adjusted risks of ATE, VTE, and death compared to age- and sex-matched controls without SLE. After diagnosis, over 60% of SLE patients were prescribed hydroxychloroquine and glucocorticoids, with increased use of cardiovascular medications observed, indicating heightened clinical attention to cardiovascular risk. The findings underscore the need to balance controlling SLE disease activity with minimizing exposure to treatments that may exacerbate cardiovascular risk, in line with European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) guidelines.