Postoperative Complications Elevated for Patients With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

TUESDAY, Nov. 3, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have an increased risk for postoperative complications, according to a study published online Oct. 9 in Rheumatology International.

Francisco Eduardo Silva, M.D., and Mirhelen Mendes de Abreu, M.D., Ph.D., from the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, conducted a nationwide retrospective matched cohort study to compare postoperative outcomes between patients with SLE and matched controls. The cohort included 1,708 patients with SLE and 8,540 controls.

The researchers observed associations for SLE with increased risks for surgical, clinical, infectious, and other procedure- or care-related complications (risk ratios, 2.20, 3.30, 3.66, and 11.33, respectively). SLE was associated with obstetric complications among patients undergoing obstetric procedures (risk ratio, 1.87). Cardiovascular risk was independently associated with higher odds of clinical and other procedure- or care-related complications within the SLE cohort (adjusted odds ratios, 2.75 and 5.46, respectively). In both sensitivity analyses restricted to elective procedures and excluding patients classified with cutaneous lupus, the associations between SLE and surgical, clinical, and infectious complications remained significant.

“These findings identify a higher-risk perioperative profile in this population, while the relative contributions of underlying disease activity and immunosuppressive treatment warrant further investigation,” the authors write.

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