03 February 2022
A new publication in Rheumatology, from BSR member Lucy M Carter et al., presents an innovative tool to simplify systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) scoring with the BILAG-2004 index – the aptly named ‘Easy-BILAG’.
The BILAG-2004 index is the most comprehensive available instrument for measuring SLE disease activity. However, it is complicated and time-consuming, and can be difficult to complete during routine clinic visits.
The new Easy-BILAG is a freely available, single-page document using colour-coding. Notably, it can be completed in under an hour, compared with 80 minutes for the standard tool. The team, from the Leeds Institute of Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Medicine, demonstrated that the Easy-BILAG also improved overall accuracy of scoring. Crucially, a similarly high level of accuracy was achieved by rheumatologists in general hospitals compared with those in tertiary centres.
Corresponding author Edward Vital said: “The standard-format BILAG is useful for assessing individual patients. But its downside was always the time and training needed to complete it. Being able to measure the progress of lupus quickly and easily has transformed my practice so I’m excited that we can now make it easy for anyone to do the same.”
Read the paper