The longer a patient's time in remission/low disease activity state (LDAS), the less damage accrual that occurs, according to a study that aimed to determine the impact of remission and LDAS on damage accrual and mortality in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients. Visits from the Lupus in Minority populations: Nature vs Nurture (LUMINA) cohort were categorized into remission (Systemic Lupus Activity Measure [SLAM] score = 0 and prednisone ≤5 mg/day and no immunosuppressants), LDAS ([not on remission], SLAM score ≤3, prednisone ≤7.5 mg/day, no immunosuppressants), or neither: active. Remission and LDAS visits were combined because of the relatively small number of remission visits. Researchers found:

• A total of 3,879 visits for 558 patients (28% Caucasian, 37% African descent, 35% Hispanic) were studied.
• These visits corresponded to 71 in remission, 585 in LDAS, and 3,223 active.
• The longer the percentage of time the patients were in remission/LDAS, the less damage accrual observed (rate ratio 0.1773).
• A trend was observed in terms of mortality although statistical significance was not reached (odds ratio 0.303).