Lupus – Let’s Get Educated

Have you ever heard of Lupus? The answer I get is compelling, because most don’t know the chronic disease that affects millions each day. Every half-hour someone is diagnosed with Lupus and women of color are 2-3 times more likely to develop the disease. Let’s get educated today.

A Brief History
Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease that can affect various parts of the body, especially the skin, joints, blood, and kidneys. However, Lupus can affect any major organ inside the body. With Lupus, something goes wrong with the immune system, which is part of the body that helps fight infections like bacteria, viruses, and germs. Autoimmune means your immune system cannot tell the difference between these foreign invaders and your body’s healthy tissues (“auto” means “self”) and creates autoantibodies that attack and destroy healthy tissue. These autoantibodies cause inflammation, pain, and damage in various parts of the body.

The two most common types of Lupus are, Systemic lupus and Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus. The most common of the two, systemic lupus, involves more serious complications of major organs. Cutaneous Lupus, refers to the skin and only limited to the skin. Although there are many types of rashes and sores caused by cutaneous lupus, the most common rash is raised, scaly and red, but not itchy. It is commonly known as a discoid rash, because the areas of rash are shaped like disks, or circles. Another common example of cutaneous lupus is a rash over the cheeks and across the bridge of the nose, known as the butterfly rash.

What can cause Lupus?
Genes - No gene or group of genes has been proven to cause lupus. Lupus does, however, appear in certain families, and when one of two identical twins has lupus, there is an increased chance that the other twin will also develop the disease. Ethnic groups (Asian, Hispanic/Latino, Native American, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Island descent) are at a higher risk of developing the disease.

Environment
While a person’s genes may increase the chance that he or she will develop lupus, it takes some kind of environmental trigger to set off the illness or to bring on a flare.
- stress, emotional stress from a divorce, death in the family, of other life complications
- viral illnesses
- anything that causes stress the body
- an infection
- ultraviolet rays from the sun and/or bulbs

Other facts
# Lupus is also a disease of flares (the symptoms worsen and you feel ill) and remissions (the symptoms improve and you feel better). Lupus can range from mild to life-threatening and should always be treated by a doctor. With good medical care, most people with lupus can lead a full life.
# Lupus is not contagious, not even through sexual contact. You cannot “catch” lupus from someone or “give” lupus to someone.
# Lupus is not like or related to cancer. Cancer is a condition of malignant, abnormal tissues that grow rapidly and spread into surrounding tissues. Lupus is an autoimmune disease, as described above.
# Lupus is not like or related to HIV (Human Immune Deficiency Virus) or AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). In HIV or AIDS the immune system is underactive; in lupus, the immune system is overactive.
# Our research estimates that at least 1.5 million Americans have lupus. The actual number may be higher; however, there have been no large-scale studies to show the actual number of people in the U.S. living with lupus.
# It is believed that 5 million people throughout the world have a form of lupus.
# Lupus strikes mostly women of childbearing age (15-44). However, men, children, and teenagers develop lupus, too.
# Women of color are 2-3 times more likely to develop lupus.
# People of all races and ethnic groups can develop lupus.
To learn more about Lupus, and the fight against it, please visit The Lupus Foundation of America