SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS [001]

An inflammatory connective tissue disorder of unknown etiology occurring predominantly in young women, but also in children; 90% of cases occur in women. The sera of most patients contain antinuclear antibodies, including anti-DNA antibodies.

Pathology, Symptoms, and Signs
Clinical findings vary with the acuteness of the disease and the distribution of the lesions. SLE may begin abruptly with fever, simulating acute infection, or may develop insidiously over months or years with episodes of fever and malaise. Manifestations referable to any organ system may appear. As many as 90% of patients complain of articular symptoms, ranging from intermittent arthralgias to acute polyarthritis, some for years before other manifestations appear. A past history of "growing pains" in childhood is not uncommon. In long-standing disease, tendon contractures and secondary joint deformity may occur without x-ray evidence of erosion (Jaccoud's arthritis).

What is lupus? What are the types of lupus?

Lupus is an autoimmune disease characterized by acute and chronic inflammation of various tissues of the body. Autoimmune diseases are illnesses that occur when the body's tissues are attacked by its own immune system. The immune system is a complex system within the body that is designed to fight infectious agents, such as bacteria and other foreign microbes. One of the ways that the immune system fights infections is by producing antibodies that bind to the microbes. Patients with lupus produce abnormal antibodies in their blood that target tissues within their own body rather than foreign infectious agents. Because the antibodies and accompanying cells of inflammation can affect tissues anywhere in the body, lupus has the potential to affect a variety of areas. Sometimes lupus can cause disease of the skin, heart, lungs, kidneys, joints, and/or nervous system. When only the skin is involved, the condition is called lupus dermatitis or cutaneous lupus erythematosus. A form of lupus dermatitis that can be isolated to the skin, without internal disease, is called discoid lupus. When internal organs are involved, the condition is referred to as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).
Both discoid and systemic lupus are more common in women than men (about eight times more common). The disease can affect all ages but most commonly begins from 20 to 45 years of age. Statistics demonstrate that lupus is somewhat more frequent in African Americans and people of Chinese and Japanese descent.