Chronic adhesive lupus serositis as a complication of systemic lupus erythematosus. Refractory chest pain and small-bowel obstruction.

Serious clinical sequelae of lupus serositis are uncommon and rarely a cause of morbidity. We describe two patients, one with chronic adhesive pericarditis and one with extensive small-bowel adhesions due to lupus peritonitis. In both, delayed institution of adequate prednisone therapy may have played a contributing role.