Common symptoms include fatigue, hair loss, sun sensitivity, painful and swollen joints, unexplained fever, skin rashes, and kidney problems. There is no one test for SLE. Usually, your doctor will ask you about your family and personal medical history and your symptoms.
Mood swings and personality changes.
People with lupus may experience unpredictable changes in moods and personality traits. This can include feelings of anger and irritability. These may be related to the disease process or, in some cases, the use of corticosteroid medications.
You may experience pain and stiffness, with or without swelling. This affects most people with lupus. Common areas for muscle pain and swelling include the neck, thighs, shoulders, and upper arms. Fever.
Common symptoms that indicate a flare are: Ongoing fever not due to an infection. Painful, swollen joints. An increase in fatigue.
Common triggers include:
Overwork and not enough rest. Being out in the sun or having close exposure to fluorescent or halogen light. Infection. Injury.
Your doctor will look for rashes and other signs that something is wrong. Blood and urine tests. The antinuclear antibody (ANA) test can show if your immune system is more likely to make the autoantibodies of lupus. Most people with lupus test positive for ANA.
No one test can diagnose lupus. The combination of blood and urine tests, signs and symptoms, and physical examination findings leads to the diagnosis.
Kidneys About one half of people with lupus experience kidney involvement, and the kidney has become the most extensively studied organ affected by lupus. Lungs About 50% of people with SLE will experience lung involvement during the course of their disease.
Living with lupus can be hard, but a positive outlook is important. You can do several things to help you live with lupus. A good place to start managing your lupus is to work with your doctor and take your medications as directed. At times, you may feel sadness and anger.
Lupus can directly affect thinking, mood, and personality. When it has these effects, it is called neuropsychiatric lupus. Symptoms of neuropsychiatric lupus include: Cognitive dysfunction: Refers to a variety of related experiences, including forgetfulness, worry, mistrust, and a general difficulty in thinking.
Many people with lupus sometimes have confusion, memory loss, and trouble expressing thoughts. The medical term is cognitive dysfunction.
The prognosis of lupus is better today than ever before. With close follow-up and treatment, 80-90% of people with lupus can expect to live a normal life span.
If left untreated, it can put you at risk of developing life-threatening problems such as a heart attack or stroke.
Common symptoms include fatigue, hair loss, sun sensitivity, painful and swollen joints, unexplained fever, skin rashes, and kidney problems. There is no one test for SLE. Usually, your doctor will ask you about your family and personal medical history and your symptoms. Your doctor will also do some laboratory tests.
Virtually any symptom of illness or inflammation can signal lupus. However, some of the symptoms most closely associated with lupus include: a butterfly-shaped rash on the face. skin changes and sun sensitivity.
Anyone can get lupus; however, women get the disease about nine times more often than men. Most often it happens in people between ages 15 and 45 years, but lupus can occur in childhood or later in life as well.
The strength of the association between different viral agents and SLE is variable. Epstein–Barr virus (EBV), parvovirus B19 (B19V), and human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) are involved in SLE pathogenesis, whereas other viruses such as Cytomegalovirus (CMV) probably play a less prominent role.
Be sure to drink at least 8 glasses of water throughout the day. This supports the elimination of toxic build up in the body, and a faulty digestive process common with lupus sufferers.
Weight changes — Lupus can sometimes cause weight loss or weight gain. Weight loss may be unintentional and due to decreased appetite or problems with the digestive system (see 'Digestive system' below). It can also be a side effect of some medications used to treat lupus.
Most people with lupus who are old enough to drink alcohol can do so in moderation. Be aware, however, that alcohol can change the way the body uses or metabolizes certain medications, rushing them into the bloodstream. This can intensify both the good and not-so-good effects of medications.
On average, it takes nearly six years for people with lupus to be diagnosed, from the time they first notice their lupus symptoms.