Performance of 2019 EULAR/ACR Classification Criteria for Systemic Lupus Erythematosus in Children and Adults : A Retrospective Observational Study

Abstract

Background: The European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) and American College of Rheumatology (ACR) recently developed a systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) classification criteria (EULAR/ACR-2019) with high sensitivity and specificity. The aim of this study was to validate and compare the performance of the newly developed criteria to that of the ACR-1997 and the 2012 Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics (SLICC-2012) criteria in juvenile-onset SLE (jSLE) and adult-onset SLE (aSLE) patients.Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of SLE patients (221 children and adult) and controls (214 children and adult) with defined rheumatic diseases to establish the ACR-1997, SLICC-2012 and EULAR/ACR-2019 criteria. The performance of the three criteria was statistically analyzed.Results: For jSLE, sensitivities of ACR-1997, SLICC-2012 and EULAR/ACR-2019 criteria were 63.3%, 94.6% and 98.2% (P < 0.001), with specificities 99.5%, 98.6% and 93.5% (P < 0.001), respectively. For aSLE, sensitivities of ACR-1997, SLICC-2012 and EULAR/ACR-2019 criteria were 72.9%, 96.8% and 99.1% (P < 0.001), with specificities 97.2%, 92.5% and 90.2% (P = 0.013), respectively. In ANA positive juvenile patients, a EULAR/ACR score ≥13 instead of a score ≥10 resulted in higher specificity (93.1% vs. 75.9%), despite slightly lower sensitivity (92.2% vs. 99.5%). In both jSLE and aSLE patients, the SLICC-2012 and EULAR/ACR-2019 criteria had increased sensitivity for major organ involvement than ACR-1997.Conclusion: The EULAR/ACR-2019 criteria showed similar sensitivity to jSLE and aSLE patients and was more sensitive than ACR-1997 and SLICC-2012 criteria, allowing earlier recognition of patients with single or major organ involvement. The adoption of a EULAR/ACR total score ≥13 in this study, instead of the initially proposed ≥10 score, was more appropriate to classify jSLE.