Living with this disease is complex. Lupus is more common in women due to hormonal factors, especially during adolescence when estrogen levels increase. Women are affected nine times more often than men.
What is lupus?
It is a chronic disease that presents several symptoms, an autoimmune disease produced by an abnormal activity of the immune system, which normally defends us from infections, but in these cases damages the body itself and generates a disease.
Types of lupus that exist
There are three types of lupus:
- Discoid Lupus (Cutaneous)This only affects the skin, producing welt-like lesions that appear on the face, neck, or scalp.
- Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE)It is more serious than cutaneous cancer; it can affect a wide variety of structures and organs, such as skin, joints, lungs, kidneys, nervous system, blood, among others.
- Drug-induced lupus: It occurs after the use of certain medications prescribed for other illnesses, particularly anticonvulsants. It is estimated that only 41% of people taking these types of medications may develop this complication.
Most frequent symptoms of the disease
They usually have a slow onset and appear gradually over several weeks; the most severe symptoms will be related to the affected organ.
- Decay
- Fatigue
- Fever
- Red lesions on the skin. The lupus butterfly rash that appears on the cheeks and nose is the most characteristic.
- Hair loss
- Joint inflammation
- Arthritis
- Nephritis, which is a serious complication, since without timely treatment it can cause irreversible kidney damage.
In children, in addition to the symptoms mentioned, there may be a decrease in white blood cells, platelets, and also red blood cells, which can break easily.
The symptoms manifest severely in:
- Kidney problems: It is one of the factors that determines the prognosis of the disease, since kidney function can be altered by the inflammation caused by the disease and in some cases lead to kidney failure.
- Central nervous system: It is also a serious manifestation; patients may experience seizures and other neurological and psychiatric manifestations.
Causes of the disease
The cause of lupus is still unknown, but it is known that there are genetic factors predisposing factors. For example, it is more likely to appear in people from families where there are other cases of lupus or other autoimmune diseases.
The environmental factors They play a very important role in the onset of the disease, for example:
- Excessive sun exposure
- Ultraviolet light
- Excessive stress
- Infections
- Some medications
- Hormones
Diagnosis and treatment
The symptoms of lupus are often confused with other illnesses. Diagnosis is based on symptoms and laboratory data. The following are considered when diagnosing lupus:
- The medical history.
- The physical examination.
- General laboratory tests.
- Specific immunological laboratory tests, such as autoantibodies.
Regarding treatment, there are effective methods, which tend to be intensive at the beginning and then the doses are reduced or the medications are discontinued.
The medications used to treat lupus can have adverse effects, which is why it's important for patients to have regular medical and laboratory checkups with their doctor. This allows for the early detection and prevention of potential side effects.
Conclusions
It's important to note that lupus is not contagious and the disease cannot be prevented. However, we always emphasize the importance of regular doctor visits and routine checkups, regardless of whether you have the disease or not.
As a health clinic, we are committed to prevention and invite every family to educate themselves and stay up-to-date with their routine checkups, to detect diseases early and avoid complications that affect our quality of life.
Do you have questions? Don't know where to start? Visit us o schedule an appointment as you prefer.
