Vitales project: consensus on measuring health outcomes for better integrated management of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is one of the most common systemic autoimmune diseases. It presents with a heterogeneous clinical picture and can cause irreversible damage. Its clinical manifestations vary over time, affecting different organs. This variability makes it complex but necessary to monitor, in a standardised and objective way, the manifestations of the disease through validated instruments that determine the degree of activity and the damage associated with the disease. OBJECTIVE: To define, through a national consensus, the standardisation of the measurement of health outcomes in SLE with the aim of improving the comprehensive control of patients with this disease. CONCLUSIONS: The measurement of health outcomes in three major domains: disease activity, disease burden and quality of life, could help improve the control of the disease in patients with SLE from a comprehensive perspective, as well as obtaining information on the established therapeutic objectives and therefore allowing better clinical decisions to be made.