Abstract
OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to determine the demographic, clinical and immunological
manifestations of SLE among the Omani population and to compare the results with a previous study in
2003and global data.
METHODOLOGY: This retrospective study included patients aged >12 years old with SLE who complied
with the 2012 Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics SLE criteria and presented to the
Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman between January- December 2016. The cumulative
frequency of disease manifestations and auto antibodies was determined. Published studies evaluating
SLE manifestations in other countries (Gulf countries, India, UK, Italy and Australia) were collected for
comparison.
RESULTS: A total of 285 patients were included in this study, 256 (89.5%) were female and 29 (10.5%)
were male with a female: male ratio of 9:1. The median age was 33 years (age range: 14-69). The 10 year
survival rate was found to be 99% with 6.8% of patients lost to follow up. More than 60% of the patients
were from two highly populated regions: Al Batinah (37%) and Muscat (24%) governorate. The
cumulative frequency of the clinical manifestations was as follows: haematological manifestations
(63%), arthritis (62%), renal manifestations (44%), serositis (12.3%), alopecia (26.3%), rash (31%), oral
ulcers (11.9%) and neurological disorders (15%). The cumulative frequency of the detected
auto-antibodies was as follows: anti-nuclear antibodies(98%), anti-double stranded DNA (81%),
extractable nuclear antigens (89%), anti-histone (37%), anti-smith (25%), anti-Sjögren's syndrome A
(36%), anti-Sjögren's syndrome B(10.6%), anti-nucleosome (35%) and anti-Ribosomal antibodies (23%).
CONCLUSION: Comparing the above results to other studies, clinical and immunological manifestations
of SLE in Oman are similar to other Gulf countries. There is an increased frequency of visceral (renal
and neurological) involvement in the Gulf region compared to other geographic areas around the world.
