Things You Need To Know About Lupus

 

WHAT IS LUPUS?

Lupus is a chronic inflammatory illness that can affect any region of the body that causes pain and inflammation.

The signs and symptoms of Lupus inflames a variety of the body systems affected, which include the joints, skin, kidneys, blood cells, brain, heart, and lungs.

It’s an autoimmune illness, which means that instead of attacking harmful tissues, the immune system attacks healthy ones.

According to the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, lupus is a widespread disease in Nigeria, with over 100,000 cases identified each year.

Again, the Lupus Foundation of America says 1.5 million people in the United States and at least five million people globally have lupus.

However, lupus can affect people of any age, but it is most commonly diagnosed in people between the ages of 15 and 45.

Based on a series of studies by researchers, African Americans, Hispanics, and Asian Americans are the races most often seen to have lupus with blacks at 40 percent; white, 38 percent; Hispanic, 15 percent; Asian, 5 percent; and Native American, 2 percent.

MYTHS AND SYMPTOMS OF LUPUS

Lupus may be a serious disease, and the symptoms vary from person to person, making it difficult to diagnose. There are many beliefs and misconceptions that others may hold that affect treatment and diagnosis.

Some believe that lupus is a form of cancer, contagious, and that only women get lupus, lupus only affects your joints, lupus eventually goes away, all false leads.

Lupus patients experience symptoms like moderate to severe joint pain, fatigue, rash, dry eye, shortness of breathe and fever. These can worsen and then get better on a regular basis.

Although there is no cure for lupus, there are therapies that can help manage symptoms. Such as getting enough sleep, practicing yoga and meditation, avoiding the sun or medications that makes one sensitive to sunlight, some patients are given steroid pills to helps manage lupus, making healthy eating choices and more.

Lupus is difficult to diagnose because its symptoms and signs are often similar to those of other illnesses.

But a face rash that mimics the wings of a butterfly unfolding across both cheeks is the most prominent indication of lupus. It occurs in many but not all instances of lupus.

Some are born with the likelihood of having lupus, and it is often instigated by infections, some types of drugs, or something as simple as sunlight.

One of the many ways to aid in managing life with lupus includes making changes in one’s lifestyle, such as sun protection to avoid skin lesion and food. Medications like anti-inflammatories and steroid injections are also used to address the illness.