Involvement of the brain is very common in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), it occurs according to various authors in 45–75% of cases. Lupus headache is one of the quite common, but not well known forms of neuropsychiatric lupus (NPSLE). The prospective comparing of the magnetic resonance (MR) findings between NPSLE patients with and without lupus headache symptomatology was the aim of the study. The groups of patients were represented by 30 patients with verified diagnosis of NPSLE without lupus headache with other neuropsychiatric symptomatology and 16 NPSLE sufferring from lupus headache. The clinical and laboratory findings in these patients did not differ from those obtained in patients with other types of neuropsychiatric symptoms. 50% of the patients had the focal hyperintensities in the white matter onMRin the T2 weighted images and FLAIR. The lesions reached the sizemainly up to 3mmand they were localized predominantly in frontal and parietal regions of both hemispheres. No enhancement was observed after intravenously administered contrast medium, therefore it is supposed to be either no blood brain barrier disruption or corticoids induced changes of it. MR findings did not significantly differ among patients with strong recurrent headache creating a part of neuropsychiatric symptomatology in NPSLE patients and NPSLE patients with other neuropsychiatric symptomatology. Authors did not observe any correlation between the severity of lupus headache and the lesions extent in MR findings.

        Key words: systemic lupus erythematosus – cerebral MR – headache – differences