Subclinical Atherosclerosis in Juvenile Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Evaluation by Carotid Intima-Media Thickness and Associated Cardiovascular Risk Factors

Juvenile systemic lupus erythematosus (JSLE) is a chronic multisystem autoimmune disease affecting individuals under 18 years of age, with reported incidence rates of 0.3-0.9 per 100,000 children per year and a prevalence ranging from 3.3 to 24 per 100,000 children globally . Approximately 10-20% of all SLE cases are diagnosed during childhood, and the disease typically follows a more severe clinical course in children than in adults .

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has emerged as the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in SLE, with patients facing a 2-10 times higher risk of developing CVD compared to the general population, and an up to 50-fold increased risk in young women of reproductive age .

In children with JSLE, CVD-related mortality is significantly elevated compared to age-matched healthy peers, and subclinical atherosclerosis has been reported in up to 32% of pediatric SLE patients (4).

This process is driven by a complex interplay of traditional risk factors - including dyslipidemia, hypertension, and obesity - alongside non-traditional disease-related factors such as persistent disease activity, lupus nephritis, prolonged corticosteroid use, and immune dysregulation (5).

Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) measured by B-mode ultrasonography is a validated, non-invasive surrogate marker for early atherosclerosis. Meta-analyses of SLE populations have demonstrated significantly increased CIMT and higher prevalence of carotid plaques in SLE patients compared to healthy controls . In JSLE specifically the Atherosclerosis Prevention in Pediatric Lupus Erythematosus, CIMT was established as the primary measure for tracking atherosclerosis progression. .