**8.1 Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)**

Nearly half of the patients with SLE have a normal capillaroscopic pattern. Others have a tortuous, meandering capillaries, bizarre loops, and a prominent subcapillary venous plexus [29]. In a systematic review by Cutolo et al. [30], 40 studies describing the capillaroscopic patterns in SLE were studied. They found the meandering capillaries and hemorrhages are to occur more frequently in patients with SLE and significantly less hairpin shaped loops compared to healthy individuals. Of note, they found the dilated capillaries to be associated with Raynaud's and gangrene in lupus patients. In seven of these studies, NFC scores also correlated with the disease activity.
