Efficacy and safety analysis of belimumab in the treatment of seven patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

Abstract:

Objective：To evaluate the efficacy and safety of belimumab in patients with active or refractory systemic lupus erythe－matosus（SLE）. Methods：Retrospective analysis was made of 7 patients with SLE who were treated with belimumab for more than half a year in the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology，The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University. Systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity index（SLEDAI），prednisone and immunosuppressor dose，complete blood count，anti-dsDNA antibody，C3 and C4 were collected，and serum creatinine，urine routine，and total proteinuria of patients with renal involvement were collected at the same time. Then，the above indexes were collected every 3 months，and adverse events during follow-up were also recorded. SPSS software was used for statistical analysis. Results：Seven patients（all female） received belimumab for more than 6 months. The most common clinical manifestation of belimumab was impaired blood system（71.4%），followed by renal impairment（42.9%）. The SLEDAI decreased during the follow-up，with statistical significance（P=0.006）. During the treatment，the anti-dsDNA antibody level significantly decreased（P=0.022） and the complement C4 level significantly increased（P=0.017）. The mean dose of prednisone decreased over time，reaching a maximum at baseline and a minimum at 6 months[（40.71±12.72） mg/d to （14.64±15.91） mg/d，P=0.001）]. Patients were well tolerated with belimumab，and 3 patients（42.9%）had adverse events，including 1 case of urinary tract infection，1 case of herpes zoster，and 1 case of viral conjunctivitis. Conclusion：In 7 patients with systemic lupus erythe－matosus treated with belimumab，SLE disease activity and glucocorticoid dose were significantly reduced，with good safety.