Systemic lupus erythematosus

It is an autoimmune disease. The body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue. It can affect the skin, joints, kidneys, brain and other organs.

The autoimmune cause is not fully understood, although it can also be caused by certain drugs. It is much more common in women than in men. It may occur at any age.

Its characteristic symptoms are swelling, joint pain, chest pain on deep breathing, fatigue, fever without any other cause, general malaise, restlessness, hair loss, mouth ulcers, sensitivity to sunlight, skin rash and swollen lymph nodes. Other symptoms depend on which part of the body is affected, such as headaches, numbness, tingling, seizures, vision problems, and personality changes, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmia), blood expectoration and breathing difficulty, uneven skin color, fingers that change color when it is cold (Raynaud phenomenon), swelling in the legs and weight gain.

The diagnosis would be made through medical questioning, complete physical examination, blood and urine tests with determination of specific markers, chest x-ray and, in some cases, analysis of kidney tissue.

Treatment will depend on the involvement of organs and systems and the severity of these manifestations. The goal is conducting general measures (sunscreen, balanced diet, physical exercise, non-smoking) and symptom control with non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), antimalarials, corticosteroids, immunosuppressive drugs, anticoagulants and/or biological drugs.