There
are more than 80 autoimmune diseases such as lupus; they cause pain and misery
to several people around the globe. Why these happen? Basically our immune system goes crazy and
attacks healthy parts of the body rather than targeting infectious invaders
such as bacteria and viruses. The autoimmune diseases develop because of our
body’s failure to distinguish ‘self’ from ‘non-self’.
According
to department of Health and Human services, 23.5 million Americans are
suffering from autoimmune diseases. However, American Autoimmune Related
Diseases Association estimates this number to more than twice.
These
body conditions are more common to women – who account for nearly 80 percent of
all cases – for reasons that are not very clear. Most often they strike women
in their reproductive years, often complicating pregnancy.
"Autoimmune diseases carry a huge burden for affected individuals and their families because of their devastating and chronic nature," says Daniel Rotrosen, director of the division of allergy, immunology and transplantation at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "They can require a lifetime of treatment, often with potent immunosuppressive medications that can have worrisome side effects," such as raising the risk of osteoporosis.
With immune system goes wrong, autoantibodies are produced in the body by a type of B cell. Autoantibodies can cause several disorders in the body with common symptoms as fatigue, dizziness, and low-grade fever. Although each disorder is distinct, inflammation is a hallmark of all of them both at target site as well as in the blood.
Many of autoimmune diseases can be debilitating. Common among them are rheumatoid arthritis, which attack the lining of joints; Type 1 diabetes, which damages the cells that make blood-sugar-controlling insulin; multiple sclerosis, which affects the brain and spinal cord by destroying lining around the nerves; lupus, which can hurt the joints, skin, heart, lungs and kidneys.
"If you tell your friends and teachers that you have cancer, they understand it, but if you tell them you have lupus, they don't understand that it took you three hours to get out of bed because your joints were so sore and inflamed," says Judith James, chair of the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. "Lupus can also affect your brain and cause depression, and affect your ability to think. It's a terrible disease.''
What causes autoimmune diseases? Researchers believe that gene mutations, the environment and even the human microbiome contribute to the development of these diseases. These body disorders are more common in some families, while rate, some people some people can suffer from more than one condition at a time.
"Autoimmune diseases appear to be a mismatch between genes and the environment," says David Hafler, chairman of the department of neurology at the Yale School of Medicine. "It's not one gene; there are hundreds of common genetic variants which together lead to disease. But all this also raises the question of why we have not found the smoking gun that defines the gender risk."
Women have a more vigorous immune response than men, in case of autoimmune diseases this trait seems to backfire. "Robust immunity in females can be good evolutionarily, but too much immunity can be bad if directed toward self," says Rhonda Voskuhl, a professor of neurology at UCLA who studies multiple sclerosis.
No cure exists for these chronic diseases; available medications only treat symptoms often with serious side effects. But the drugs are getting better. And many drugs for autoimmune diseases are under development.
This sounds very painful and frustrating.
As one of the victims of an autoimmune disease - alopecia areata - that damaged her hair, mentioned her hope and frustration; I'm resigned to it," she says, "I kept hoping something would happen, that they would make some kind of discovery that would get my hair back, but they didn't."
"Autoimmune diseases carry a huge burden for affected individuals and their families because of their devastating and chronic nature," says Daniel Rotrosen, director of the division of allergy, immunology and transplantation at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "They can require a lifetime of treatment, often with potent immunosuppressive medications that can have worrisome side effects," such as raising the risk of osteoporosis.
With immune system goes wrong, autoantibodies are produced in the body by a type of B cell. Autoantibodies can cause several disorders in the body with common symptoms as fatigue, dizziness, and low-grade fever. Although each disorder is distinct, inflammation is a hallmark of all of them both at target site as well as in the blood.
Many of autoimmune diseases can be debilitating. Common among them are rheumatoid arthritis, which attack the lining of joints; Type 1 diabetes, which damages the cells that make blood-sugar-controlling insulin; multiple sclerosis, which affects the brain and spinal cord by destroying lining around the nerves; lupus, which can hurt the joints, skin, heart, lungs and kidneys.
"If you tell your friends and teachers that you have cancer, they understand it, but if you tell them you have lupus, they don't understand that it took you three hours to get out of bed because your joints were so sore and inflamed," says Judith James, chair of the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. "Lupus can also affect your brain and cause depression, and affect your ability to think. It's a terrible disease.''
What causes autoimmune diseases? Researchers believe that gene mutations, the environment and even the human microbiome contribute to the development of these diseases. These body disorders are more common in some families, while rate, some people some people can suffer from more than one condition at a time.
"Autoimmune diseases appear to be a mismatch between genes and the environment," says David Hafler, chairman of the department of neurology at the Yale School of Medicine. "It's not one gene; there are hundreds of common genetic variants which together lead to disease. But all this also raises the question of why we have not found the smoking gun that defines the gender risk."
Women have a more vigorous immune response than men, in case of autoimmune diseases this trait seems to backfire. "Robust immunity in females can be good evolutionarily, but too much immunity can be bad if directed toward self," says Rhonda Voskuhl, a professor of neurology at UCLA who studies multiple sclerosis.
No cure exists for these chronic diseases; available medications only treat symptoms often with serious side effects. But the drugs are getting better. And many drugs for autoimmune diseases are under development.
This sounds very painful and frustrating.
As one of the victims of an autoimmune disease - alopecia areata - that damaged her hair, mentioned her hope and frustration; I'm resigned to it," she says, "I kept hoping something would happen, that they would make some kind of discovery that would get my hair back, but they didn't."
I live with Lupus, primary biliary cirosis, RA, IBS-D, RAYNAUDS, back surgery twice, spinal cord simulator implant, losing hair, and many other problems. Auto immune diseases are ruthless! It's awful.
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