OBJECTIVE: To evaluate coronary artery findings using coronary artery angiography in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients with myocardial perfusion abnormalities. METHODS: Ninety female SLE patients, ages from 18 to 55 years old, more than 5 years of disease duration, without current or previous confirmed coronary artery disease (CAD), and who were either in use or had used steroid treatment for at least 1 year were evaluated. Myocardial perfusion scintigraphy was performed using a singlephoton emission computed tomography employing Technetium 99m-sestamibi. Images were captured at resting and after dipyridamole-induced stress. The CAD risk factors (RF) considered were the traditional ones in general population and SLE-related factors. All patients who had abnormal findings on myocardial perfusion tests were invited to undergo coronary angiography. RESULTS: The mean age was 38 ± 10 years old, with mean disease duration of 128 ± 59 months, American College of Rheumatology (ACR) number 7 ± 1, Disease Activity Index for SLE (SLE-DAI) score 6 ± 5 and Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics/ACR Damage Index for SLE (SLICC/ACR-DI) score 2 ± 2. Thirty-three percent of patients presented myocardial perfusion scintigraphy abnormalities. Regression logistic analysis was performed considering the traditional CAD-RF and SLE-related variables in 48 SLE patients on regular follow-up. Current vasculitis was associated with abnormal myocardial perfusion. There was no association between other clinical and/or serologic features, cumulative dose or duration of prednisone use and myocardial perfusion scintigraphy results. Twenty-one patients with abnormal myocardial scintigraphy agreed to undergo coronary angiography. Atherosclerotic plaques were identified by angiography in eight patients (38%). Abnormal angiography subgroup presented higher number of traditional CAD-RF (p = 0.006). Arterial hypertension, postmenopausal status and higher triglyceride level showed a significant association with abnormal angiography (p = 0.046, 0.024 and 0.043, respectively). The number of ACR criteria, SLE-DAI and SLICC/ACR-DI scores were also higher in the sub-group with coronary abnormalities (p = 0.018, 0.010 and 0.003, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Current vasculitis was an important variable associated with abnormal myocardial scintigraphy. This study suggests that myocardial scintigraphy can be used as a screening test for CAD in SLE patients with high-risk of cardiovascular disease, even in the absence of ischemic heart symptoms. Patients with abnormal myocardial perfusion results and at least four CAD-RF had higher risk of presenting coronary stenosis on coronary angiography.
systemic lupus erythematosus; coronary artery disease; risk factors; myocardial scintigraphy; coronary angiography
