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August 30, 2026LupusOpen Access

A structured primary care–led triage and referral pathway for systemic lupus erythematosus: Operational criteria and referral outcomes from a real-world rheumatology practice

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Authors

JLJuan Sebastián Theran LeónIndustrial University of SantanderARAndrés Felipe Otero RuedaUniversidad Autónoma de Bucaramanga

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Implication

Retrospective observational study demonstrates risk-stratified referral times in systemic lupus erythematosus, indicating structured primary care triage streamlines rheumatology access.

Key Points

  • To describe the operational criteria and evaluate referral outcomes of a structured, primary care-led clinical triage pathway for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in a real-world setting.
  • Retrospective observational study of 148 adult patients with confirmed SLE managed between January 2025 and January 2026 at SERVIMED IPS in Colombia.
  • Patients were classified into a four-level triage framework (continued primary care, programmed referral, prioritized referral, urgent referral) using predefined clinical and laboratory criteria applied to medical records.
  • Among 148 patients (84.5% female; median age 38 years), 62.8% (93/148) required outpatient rheumatology consultation (38 programmed, 55 prioritized) and 12.8% (19/148) required urgent referral.
  • Median time to rheumatology evaluation was 2 days (IQR 1–3) for urgent referrals, 22 days (IQR 15–31) for prioritized referrals, and 49 days (IQR 38–62) for programmed referrals.
  • Newly diagnosed patients were categorized into prioritized referral (Level 3) more frequently than established patients (56.5% vs 28.4%), with an overall median SLEDAI-2K score of 6 (IQR 4–10, n=92).

Cite This Study

León et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a93f0a36c1a8fb52e79cf8fhttps://doi.org/10.1177/09612033261484768
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