Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multisystem autoimmune recurrent inflammatory condition that most often manifests as a mixture of mucocutaneous, musculoskeletal, and hematologic involvements. SLE is subdivided into acute, subacute, and chronic forms. 1,2 As many as 90% of SLE patients develop mucocutaneous symptoms at some point during the course of their disease, and up to 25% have cutaneous involvement at the time of diagnosis. 1,3 The presentation of mucocutaneous symptoms range in severity and frequency and are often triggered and intensified by ultraviolet radiation (UVR). 3 The resulting cutaneous lesions can occur with or without SLE. 3 SLE can run many courses clinically and as such has a classification that separates the 47 forms that have cutaneous involvement from the overall systemic involvement of the disease. SLE Diagnostic Criteria, as described by the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and European League Against Rheumatism in 2019, pose the new criteria that appear to have an increased specificity and sensitivity compared to previous diagnostic criteria models. 4 SLE affects 62.2-84.8 per 100 000 in the United States with an estimated prevalence of 4.6-5.6 per 100 000 per year. 2 SLE is 3-4× more prevalent in Black women, 1.5-2× more likely in Asian and Hispanic women than in White women, with evidence that there are disparities due socioeconomic factors that play a role in the diagnosis and treatment of SLE. 5,6 Black women tend to develop SLE earlier in life and have a higher mortality rate. 6 The risk for skin damage is higher in Black people with lupus than in Whites and Hispanics. 6,7 The incidence of cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE) is 4 cases per 100 000, and the prevalence is 73 cases per 100 000 persons. 8 SLE is not a reportable diagnosis, and thus, it is likely that number of people with this condition is greater than estimated.Broadly, photosensitivity (PSN) is an abnormal reaction to sunlight/UVR exposure that leads to a rash or lesion formation as determined by a practitioner. Photosensitivity is one of the 11 classification criteria for SLE, and the ACR defines it as "a skin rash as a result of unusual reaction to sunlight." Between 23% and 83% of patients with SLE are reported to be sensitive to UVR. 3 True photosensitive reactions to UVR can occur up to 3 weeks after exposure and may present with fatigue and arthralgias. 2,3 This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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