Background
and Aim: The standard treatment regimen for pemphigus is
adminitration of systemic corticosteroids and adjuvant agents. Previous studies
have shown that corticosteroid therapy may alter lipid profile and reduce the
atherogenic index in some disorders. This study was conducted to evaluate
the changes in lipid profile in pemphigus patients treated with oral
corticosteroids alone or in combination with adjuvants.
Methods:
In this retrospective corss-sectional study, medical records of 148 pemphigus
patients admitted in Razi Hospital in Tehran were reviewed for serum levels of
low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), total
cholestrol, and triglyceride on the day of admission till 3 weeks after
initiation of the treatment.
Results:
Fifty-eight percent of patients were female and the mean age of the patients
was 47.1 years. 79.3% and 13.3% of patients had been treated with prednisolone
plus azathiorine or prednisolone alone, respectively. The remainig patients
were treated by administration of oral prednisolone and other adjuvants. Serum
levels of LDL, HDL, total cholestrol and triglyceride were significantly higher
3 weeks after initiation of treatment compared to baseline (P<0.05). With
the exception of the signifcantly higher level of triglycerides in women, there
was no statistically significant association between the levels of other serum
lipids at the end of 3 weeks treatment with gender, age, severity of the
disease, use of statins, and the treatment regimen (P>0.05).
Conclusion:
Although the level of different components of the lipid profile in Iranian
patients with pemphigus changed after receiving treatment for 3 weeks, it seems
that those changes were not associated with an increased atherogenic index of
pemphigus patients.
