Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes of Acute Ischemic Stroke in Patients With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. A Nationwide Cohort Study.

Objective: We aim to study the clinical characteristics and outcomes of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) in patients with and without systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using the National Inpatient Sample (2016-2021) to analyze AIS hospitalizations among patients with and without SLE. Outcomes included in-hospital mortality (primary) and secondary endpoints such as mechanical ventilation, intracerebral hemorrhage, acute kidney injury (AKI), blood transfusion, length of stay, and hospitalization costs. Propensity score matching was performed to adjust for baseline characteristics, and multivariable logistic regression assessed outcome associations, incorporating stroke severity (NIH Stroke Scale).

Results: Among 3 678 244 AIS hospitalizations, 18 975 (0.52%) involved SLE patients. SLE patients were younger (mean age 58.1 vs. 69.8 years, p < 0.001), predominantly female (86.7% vs. 49.4%, p < 0.001), and had higher rates of chronic kidney disease and anemia but lower rates of atrial fibrillation and hyperlipidemia. Unadjusted analysis showed lower in-hospital mortality in SLE patients (5.85% vs. 6.67%, p = 0.04), which persisted after propensity matching (adjusted OR 0.70, 95% CI 0.60-0.82). However, adjusting for NIHSS attenuated this association (OR 0.96, 95% CI 0.67-1.38), suggesting the mortality benefit was largely driven by less severe strokes in the SLE group.

Conclusions: While SLE patients hospitalized for AIS exhibited lower in-hospital mortality, this was primarily attributable to lower stroke severity at presentation. Further research is needed to validate these findings.