Up to Date in Internal Medicine: From Older to the New 2019 Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Classification Criteria

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is considered the prototype of autoimmune diseases, the most complex autoimmune pathology and it is characterized by a wide range of immune processes, important antibodies production as well as an impressive spectrum of clinical manifestations. The great variety of lupus signs and symptoms caused difficulties in establishing well-defined classification criteria, as well as sustaining the clinical diagnosis.

In 2019, a joint initiative of European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) and American College of Rheumatology (ACR) released a new set of classification criteria for SLE, worldwide SLE experts were involved, this being the largest SLE classification effort up to date.