Renal flares are common in patients with severe proliferative lupus nephritis treated with pulse immunosuppressive therapy: Long‐term followup of a cohort of 145 patients participating in randomized controlled studies

Abstract

Nephritic flares are common in patients with proliferative lupus nephritis, even in those with a complete response to therapy, but they do not necessarily result in loss of renal function if treated with additional immunosuppressive agents. Renal flares are an important feature of the natural history of lupus nephritis and provide an opportunity for additional preventive strategies, as well as measures of efficacy in future therapeutic trials.