Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Symptoms of lupus

The progression of lupus over time varies within individuals. Some patients have more severe onset of the disease early on and then the disease will slowly become dormant.  Other patients can have a mild form of lupus early on and eventually gets worse.  Early on in the disease the problems of the autoimmune disease are that it attacks the body’s healthy tissue these attacks can lead to irreversible damage to orangs such as the kidney and heart.  About half of patients have a milder form that is confined to the skin and musculoskeletal system. The other half will have a more severe form of lupus generally the type that attacks the internal organs.
Going through the body by system there are signs and symptoms that will help determine lupus. In the brain and nervous system if you have frequent headaches, confusion or memory loss.  In your lungs, if you have pleurisy and inflammation such as pneumonitis or pulmonary emboli causing shortness of breath and pain while breathing. In the renal system the kidneys can become inflamed and cause lupus nephritis. The inflammation can most likely cause kidney failure and you will have symptoms associated with that such as blood in the urine, swelling of your feet and legs, and a high blood pressure.  Lupus also effects the eyes as well causing nerve and blood vessel damage, dry, puffy eyes. Someone with lupus might get sores in their mouth. On the skin there may be rashes such as a butterfly rash on the face. These rashes can be further irritated by the sun. Some may also experience hives or sores that worsen with sun exposure.  If your fingers and toes turn blue with exposure to cold or during stressful situations this is because your blood vessels are constricting a condition called Raynaud´s phenomenon which is associated with having lupus. In the stomach lupus can increase ulcerative colitis, liver disease, and pancreatitis. This can cause vomiting, abdominal pain, bladder infections, and blood in the urine. The legs and joints will swell and be painful like rheumatoid arthritis and disease that exits in conjunctions with lupus.


This is a great article to read about lupus in general and the signs and symptoms. http://go.galegroup.com.georgefox.idm.oclc.org/ps/retrieve.do?sort=RELEVANCE&docType=Article&tabID=T002&prodId=AONE&searchId=R1&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&contentSegment=&currentPosition=1&searchResultsType=SingleTab&inPS=true&userGroupName=newb64238&docId=GALE%7CA294505172&contentSet=GALE%7CA294505172

References: 
http://www.mollysfund.org/2013/01/lupus-symptoms-and-signs/?gclid=CNSEwq3K5cgCFYlafgod4bkItg

http://www.everydayhealth.com/lupus/living/battling-lupus.aspx

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