Prevalence of physician-diagnosed systemic lupus erythematosus in the United States: Results from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Objective: To determine the prevalence of physician-diagnosed systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in a national population-based sample in the United States. Methods: Data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) were used to estimate the prevalence of self-reported physician-diagnosed SLE. Adult participants (agegreater than or equal to17; sample n=20,050) were asked if they had been diagnosed with SLE by a physician. All medications currently being taken by survey participants were recorded. Two definitions were used to classify participants with SLE: self-reported physician diagnosis and self-reported physician diagnosis and a current prescription for antimalarials, corticosteroids, or other immunosuppressive medications. Results: The prevalence of SLE in adults agegreater than or equal to17 based on self-reported physician diagnosis was 241 per 100,000 (95% confidence interval [CI] 130-352). The prevalence of SLE in adults agegreater than or equal to17 based on self-reported physician diagnosis and current prescription for antimalarials, corticosteroids, or immunosuppressive medications was 53.6 per 100,000 (95% Cl 12.2-95.0). Among adult women, the prevalence of treated SLE was 100 per 100,000 (95% Cl 19.8-179.3). Conclusions: Projecting a prevalence of 100 per 100,000 to the population of the United States, approximately 108,300 adult women had a self-reported physician diagnosis of SLE and were receiving specific treatment in 2000. This estimate is a reasonable lower boundary, as it does not include undiagnosed persons or those not being treated with antimalarials, corticosteroids or immunosuppressive medications.