# Impact of telitacicept on gonadal function in adult female patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: a prospective cohort study

## TL;DR

This study shows that telitacicept improves gonadal function and reduces disease activity in adult women with lupus.

## Contribution

The study is the first to evaluate telitacicept's impact on gonadal function in female SLE patients.

## Key findings

- Telitacicept significantly reduced prolactin and luteinizing hormone levels compared to non-telitacicept treatment.
- Telitacicept was associated with a lower incidence of abnormal prolactin levels at month 6.
- Telitacicept improved SLE disease activity scores at multiple time points.

## Abstract

Telitacicept has shown promise in disease control of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). This study aimed to evaluate the impact of telitacicept on gonadal function in adult female patients with SLE.

In this prospective cohort study, adult female SLE patients aged 18 to 45 years were included and divided into telitacicept and non-telitacicept group. Hormonal levels of estradiol (E2), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), prolactin (PRL), and anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) were measured at baseline, month 1, 3, and 6 post-treatment. Generalized estimating equations adjusting for baseline confounders was used.

A total of 78 patients were included, with 38 in the telitacicept group and 40 in the non-telitacicept group. Telitacicept significantly decreased PRL and LH levels (both adjusted Ptime<0.001), with greater reduction compared to non-telitacicept treatment (adjusted Pgroup=0.001 and <0.001, respectively). In the multivariate logistic regression, telitacicept treatment was associated with a significantly lower incidence of abnormal PRL levels at month 6 (odds ratio=0.138, 95% confidence interval: 0.036-0.527, P = 0.004). The levels of AMH and E2 were increased and the levels of FSH were decreased (all adjusted Ptime<0.05), while the changes of AMH, E2 and FSH levels were similar between the two groups (all adjusted Pgroup>0.05). SLE Disease Activity Index scores were significantly lower with telitacicept compared to non-telitacicept treatment at month 1, 3 and 6 post-treatment (all P<0.05). The incidence of adverse events was similar between the two groups.

Telitacicept demonstrates significant benefits in improving gonadal function and controlling disease activity in female SLE patients.