Background: Common aetiopathogenic factors may explain the association of ulcerative colitis with autoimmune disorders such as systemic lupus erythematosus.
Patients: We report two cases of ulcerative colitis associated with idiopathic systemic lupus erythematosus: one patient who developed ulcerative colitis 11 years after having been diagnosed as a case of systemic lupus erythematosus and one case of simultaneous appearance of the two diseases. The lupus clinical manifestations were in neither case correlated with the treatment of ulcerative colitis.
Conclusion: The association between ulcerative colitis and systemic lupus erythematosus is rare. Although a chance occurrence cannot be excluded it is possible that both conditions share some genetic or immunological defects.