ABSTRACT
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by autoantibody production and immune complex formation whose deposition causes chronic inflammatory lesions in different organs.1,2 Mechanisms that contribute to the formation of auto-antibodies and immune complexes include loss of tolerance to nuclear antigens and other components of one’s own body, decreased clearance of immune complexes, and abnormal B-and T-cell activation.2 The disease is characterized by a combination of different clinical and immunological symptoms reported in Table 18.1.
