Lupus is an autoimmune disease wherein the cells in your body is perceived by your immune system as foreign. Our immune system attacks anything that they perceive foreign that have infiltrated our body, thus inflammatory response occur. The inflammatory response of these interaction releases some signals that will make one’s body to swell and become reddish.
Lupus is a serious disease. It can affect your joints, kidneys, heart and other parts of your body. If not treated early, it may lead to complications at an early onset, like osteoporosis. In terms of gender, females usually acquires the disease earlier than men. Once they get the disease, females will most likely have fractures due to this complication.
There are 5 types of lupus:
1. Systemic Lupus Erythematosus – this is the type of lupus that affects your body as whole as organs and cells are damaged by your own immune system.
2. Discoid Lupus Erythematosus – this type of lupus has a great affinity to occur at the face, ears, and scalp, presenting with redness and sores in the skin.
3. Subacute Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus – this usually occurs in the ages 15 – 40, and the gender is usually white females. This type of lupus presents with scaly lesions like a psoriasis.
4. Neonatal Lupus Erythematosus – this type of lupus is due to the presence of the Ro/SSA antibody in the birth-giving mother. The baby will not have evident lesions at birth, but will later on seen after the first week of life.
5. Drug-Induced Lupus Erythematosus – this type of lupus is acquired due to the intake of medications. There are 38 medications documented to cause lupus and with the intake of this drugs, the person will later on develop systemic lupus erythematosus.
There are still no know cure to this serious illness up to now, but the good thing is that is there are medications that will help relieve the symptom associated with the disease. There are also natural lupus treatment that you could use as an alternative.
If you have been diagnosed with SLE, then better take some measures about it. Take a rest and do not tire yourself as you may be easily be fatigued. Avoid going out in the sunny days as ultraviolet rays may have some serious effect on your condition. Lastly, you will need some lifestyle modifications as there may be some food and activity restrictions.