Pathophysiology of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE)
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is a genetic disorder. SLE is a type III hypersensitivity or an autoimmune hypersensitivity (VanMeter, K. C., PhD, & Hubert, R. J., BS, 2014). Meaning that the body is attacking itself. In SLE a large number of autoantibodies circulate through the body (VanMeter, K. C., PhD, & Hubert, R. J., BS, 2014). These autoantibodies are deposited into the connective tissue all over the body (VanMeter, K. C., PhD, & Hubert, R. J., BS, 2014). These autoantibodies activate the complement system and cause inflammation and necrosis of the tissue that the autoantibodies are near (VanMeter, K. C., PhD, & Hubert, R. J., BS, 2014). This usually takes place in many systems in the body. In order to be diagnosed at least four body systems have to be affected.
Author’s Research Focus The researcher decided to research this for two main reasons. The first reason was to gain a better
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My grandmother died of Lupus when I was very little so researching the disease has always interested me. I will be very interested to see if in my nursing career if new medications are established to help with SLE. Also, because SLE is genetic I will be very interested to see if they come up with some sort of genetic testing to be done. If genetic testing is established for SLE I would be very interested in working as a nurse in that area. Throughout my nursing career I will always be interested and I will try to stay up to date on any new research done on SLE. If I ever saw myself going towards the career of research as a nurse I would want to help research SLE. I am so excited for these new findings. This new research may be able to prevent people with SLE from having such a premature death. I hope that in my nursing career I come across new medications to help with SLE. These medications may even come about from this
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) also referred to lupus dates back to the middle ages and has made an explosion in the past 60 years. Even though more than 1.5 million Americans have lupus and 90% of lupus sufferers are women, between the ages of 15 to 44 (Lupus Research Institute), there is little awareness about the disease. 72% of Americans aged 18-34 have either not heard of the disease or know nothing about it (Medical News Today). However, researchers continue on working to have a better understanding of SLE factors, pathophysiology, current treatment and new prospects for treatment.
Systematic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic, systemic, autoimmune disease. This condition causes the body to mistaken its own tissues and organs as foreign bodies and begins attacking them causing continuing inflammation and pain. (Huether & McCance, 2012) The cause of SLE still remains unknown, but it is possible that is inherited as a complex trait or caused by environmental stimuli. (S) Anyone is at risk for Lupus, but is more common among women than men and is more prevalent of African Americans and Asians. (National Library of Medicine 2010, para 2) This condition can be difficult to diagnose, as a patient must present a number of the recognizable symptoms. Depending on the location that Lupus presents itself in the body, the symptoms
The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and the Georgia Council on Lupus Education and Awareness (GCLEA) partnered to increase community awareness on Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and to further educate lupus patients throughout the underserved region of southwest Georgia. Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, the most common form of lupus, is an autoimmune disease that causes the immune system to attack needed body tissues (“Lupus,” 2018). This specific type of lupus affects major functions of the body including the brain, lungs, skin, and kidneys. Lupus is commonly difficult to diagnose in humans due to its vague symptoms that mimic the symptoms of other major conditions (‘Lupus,” 2017). Presently, researchers are unaware of the origins
Do not seek for the answers that cannot be given, for you would not be able to live them, and the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now, and perhaps, without knowing it, you will live along some distant day into the answers (Paul J. Donoghue 47).” Talk about quote. “Lupus can cause serious kidney damage; kidney failure is one of the leading causes of death among people with lupus. If your brain is affected by lupus, you may experience headaches, dizziness, behavior changes, hallucinations, and even strokes or seizures. Many people with lupus experience memory problems and may have difficulty expressing their thoughts (Lupus).” Having lupus also increases your risk of “Infection, cancer, bone tissue death, and pregnancy complications like miscarriages. But thank god when I got pregnant with my third child, Brandon, he come out perfectly. I was so lucky and happy,” said Kizzy
Lupus is a lifelong, autoimmune disease. This means that the immune system of a person with lupus cannot tell the difference between its own cells and what is foreign. This leads to the immune system attacking healthy tissue throughout the entire body.
Lupus is a chronic, lasts for a long time, inflammatory and autoimmune disease. Lupus is characterized by being autoimmune which is caused by antibodies made by the immune system that attacks the body and its tissues. Also, Lupus is a systemic disease. Systemic diseases in medicine mean:"affecting the whole body, or at least multiple organ systems."(1) Moreover, this diseases has a unique characteristic of flare-ups or relapses, when the disease shows severe symptoms, and remissions when the disease gets better and shows mild or no symptoms at all.(2)
Most know Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) as simply lupus. It is difficult to diagnose and treat but the symptoms can be mentally and physically devastating for any patient. Many may not realize the extent to which a person with SLE is affected on a day to day basis. It is important for healthcare professionals to understand the disease process, including the cause, signs, symptoms, and treatment of SLE. By understanding the aforementioned, healthcare professionals can assist with reporting signs and symptoms to the patient’s doctor to further reach a correct diagnosis, but to provide holistic care to the patient. SLE is a heterogeneous autoimmune disease which means the body’s immune system fallaciously attacks healthy tissues and various organs, in this case, primarily the skin , joints, kidneys, and brain of both men and women.
Lupus is a chronic, autoimmune disease that causes swelling, pain, and inflammation throughout the body. An autoimmune disease is when the white blood cells inside a person’s body cannot tell the difference between healthy tissue and foreign invaders. That cause the white blood cells to attack and kill the tissue in body systems, including organs like the heart, brain, lungs, and kidneys. When diagnosing for lupus it is extremely difficult. This is because the signs and symptoms of Lupus often imitate those of other diseases. The sign that differentiates Lupus from other diseases, is a facial rash that resembles a butterfly across the cheeks and nose. This is an often seen sign but it doesn’t always occur. There are several types of Lupus including
Lupus is an autoimmune disease in an overly active state that attacks healthy, functioning tissue. This disease is not well known mainly for two reasons, firstly, it is not given enough hype in social media. Secondly, many people show symptoms during the early stages of lupus however, the victims do not recognize its severity until the disease has afflicted permanent damage. This is usually because some symptoms are similar to other less threatening ailments. Lupus affects many systems of the body which include the gastrointestinal system, the cardiopulmonary system, the musculoskeletal system, the renal system, and the integumentary system. This disease is formerly caused by genetic inheritance however, there are a great number of factors that trigger the immediate onset of lupus, as it is not necessarily prevalent on a person who has the genes from birth. Although there is no known cure for lupus, efficacious forms of treatment are possible.
Like lightning or tiger stripes, no two diagnoses of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus are exactly alike. Some signs and symptoms might be mild, while others could be more severe, occurring suddenly or possibly developing slowly over time1. Cases of SLE could be a permanent fixture in an individual’s life, or could be temporary, decreasing in occurrence or symptoms in women during and after menopause1. Fatigue is one of the more common signs and symptoms in close to 80% of the cases reported, which in turn leads to decreased physical activity and subsequently a lessened ability to execute activities of daily living because of the decline of isometric strenght2,4. Because of the fatigue and having “lower dynamic muscle strength”, impeded career opportunities, a lessened quality of life, and capabilities of a low functional performance, many patients find
Lupus also known as Lupus Erythematosus is a long standing autoimmune disease. In an autoimmune disease the body immune system attacks itself. The inflammation that has develop by these attacks causes damage to the bodies tissue and organ. The frequently affected bodies tissue and organ are the brain, joints, skin, kidney, heart, lung, and blood vessel. Nevertheless, this disease is difficult to assess due to the widespread of affected age groups, ethnics, gender geography area and socioeconomic differences researcher and scientists cannot determine its origin. There is different form of lupus and the most common is SLE or systemic Lupus Erythematosus which affect many parts of the body, Discoid lupus erythematosus that causes skin rashes that doesn’t go away, Subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus causes skin sores on parts of the body that are exposed to sun, Drug
What is Lupus? Lupus is an autoimmune disease in which our autoantibodies target self-proteins, known as ANAs. Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is understood to be caused by our genetics and the environmental triggers from our everyday lives. There are four different types to this incurable but manageable disease, Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus, Drug-induced Lupus Erythematosus, Neonatal Lupus, and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. I will cover all of them, the main focus is on Systemic Lupus Erythematosus which is commonly diagnosed in females.
Lupus also known as the systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is an autoimmune disease which signifies that the body’s immune system attacks the healthy tissues and organs by mistake. Lupus can affect any parts of the body including skins, joints, kidneys, blood vessels and as well as cause large inflammations in the organs that are affected by the disease. When an individual is diagnosed with Lupus, their immune system becomes hyperactive and begin to attack normal healthy tissues. The immune system makes antibodies which help fights against bacteria and viruses. Lupus cause the immune system to not able to distinguish between antigens and healthy tissues. As a result of not being able to distinguish between antigens and healthy tissues, the immune system starts to direct antibodies against healthy tissues. Lupus can be mild
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease. Consequently, all organs and tissues are at risk of being damaged by inflammation. The most affected organs are the kidneys, lungs, heart, and skin (Harvery and Zieve; Simanta, and Mohan). The most affected tissues are the joints, and nervous tissues. The renal system controls blood pressure and blood volume. It also removes waste products and toxins from the blood. SLE causes inflammation of the nephrons, preventing the kidney to properly maintain blood volume and properly filter waste products and toxins (Harvery and Zieve). Kidney inflammation alone will trigger complications throughout the entire body. The lungs are responsible for the gas exchange with the
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus is a chronic autoimmune disease which causes inflammation of your joints, tissues, and organs. The inflammation presents itself as heat, pain, swelling and redness. SLE is a variable disease that doesn’t take any one particular course; therefore its unpredictability makes it even more devastating. No two people will experience the same disease symptoms or severity level. As S.L.E progresses there will be periods of very subtle to no symptoms at all called remission or an exacerbation of symptoms called flares.