LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS ASSOCIATED WITH PREGNANCY AND MENOPAUSE

Abstract

ACCORDING to O'Leary,¹ Kaposi in 1872 was the first to describe acute disseminated lupus erythematosus. Mook, Weiss, and Bromberg² in 1931 reported 13 cases, and in 1932 Madden³ reported 9 cases of acute lupus erythematosus. Since then many authorities have written and discussed the subject of acute disseminated lupus erythematosus. Baehr and Jarcho⁴ stated that 95% of the patients are female. We recently observed and treated three pregnant women who had acute disseminated lupus erythematosus which terminated fatally; therefore, we decided to survey the problem of the relationship of pregnancy to lupus erythematosus. There are conflicting opinions regarding the relationship of pregnancy to acute disseminated, subacute disseminated, chronic disseminated, and chronic discoid lupus erythematosus. The following questions are posed. Is any particular type of lupus erythematosus prone to become worse during pregnancy? Does lupus erythematosus frequently start in pregnancy or after delivery ? Does