Systemic lupus erythematosus, renal disease, hemodialysis and vitamin A.

Recent studies indicate that clinically-active systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is uncommon in patients with end-stage renal disease undergoing long-term hemodialysis. Several lines of indirect evidence suggest that the dialysis procedure itself may be responsible for inducing remission; that SLE could reflect a toxicity reaction to excessive tissue levels of vitamin A; and that remission associated with dialysis may be due to a gradual reduction in vitamin A levels at the sites of SLE activity.