LUPUS(SLE)

Lupus (SLE)
Introduction
While there are numerous diseases that threaten the health of people, there are some that have only been discovered or are being attributed to the recent developments in medical sciences. Among the new kinds of diseases, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is a major threat. Lupus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease, which makes the affected person's immune system hyperactive (Hughes, 2000). This entices the immune system into treating all living structures as foreign. As a result, the immune system directs antibodies even towards the healthy tissue in the body since they also register as antigens for the system (Rhines, 2012). The symptoms of the disease manifests in different ways, such as in the form of tissue inflammation, or swelling. In severe cases it can even manifest in the organ systems damaging lungs, heart, kidneys, and even blood (Lahita & Phillips, 2004). Symptoms are different from person to person and at times be transient. Some of the more common symptoms include: Skin rash that may be widespread and exacerbated with exposure to sunlight, photophobia, fatigue, and chest pain when taking deep breaths (A.D.A.M., 2011). Many people maintain the opinion that there is only one type of Lupus. However, this is not the case. There are numerous kinds of lupus with the most common being Lupus (SLE) – often termed as generic Lupus. This form attacks entire organs systems of the body, damaging them severely (Lahita & Phillips, 2004). The problem with Lupus lies in its lack of detection, it has an insidious onset, progression resulting in delayed or lack of treatment. Furthering these risks, patients without adequate health coverage often forgo treatment due to the cost incurred with existing procedures. (Lahita & Phillips, 2004). While theoretically diagnosis can be made with its numerous presenting symptoms, in reality these symptoms often act as red herrings (Wallace, 2008). The exact cause of the disease remains unknown since the diagnosis itself is quite difficult. It has many symptoms that presents slowly (Ginzer & Tayar, 2012). The current statistics indicate that Asians and African Americans are at an increased risk of being affected by Lupus. It is not known whether this is a random disease or is it caused by some kind of life style choice and treatment obtained. Since both the African Americans and the Asians have different life styles, the congruence and similarity cannot be observed. As far as gender based studies are concerned, they have revealed that when compared with men, more women suffered from Lupus. Again, the source cannot be traced since women’s habit varies according to the culture to which they belong. When we look at the age, it is apparent that the disease has an odd pattern. Most often, lupus starts in people in there 20s and 30s (Ginzer & Tayar, 2012). It should be noted that the disease does not affect the human body when it is at the weaker stage and more susceptible to diseases. The disease occurs in the body when it is at its prime and less susceptible to diseases. It has been noted that the disease is diagnosed at a later stage in many cases. It remains to be known why the disease spreads in this specific pattern. It was shocking to observe that there was a sizeable part of the population that did not get diagnosed at all and only post mortem investigations revealed the prevalence of Lupus in their systems. Even when the disease is diagnosed, it remains uncertain whether the patients will fully be alleviated from the symptoms or not.
Pathophysiology
The normal function of the immune system is to make proteins termed as antibodies. These antibodies are made so that the body can be protected against diseases. The antibodies fight antigens like viruses and bacteria (Moore, 2000). Here it should be noted that an antigen is anything that induces an immune response. In many cases, the symptoms appear to be indicative of some other diseases. Often, in the early stages, Lupus (SLE) cannot be diagnosed due to a lack of experienced staff (Moore, 2000). While research is ongoing, there is no definitive cure for Lupus. The actual problem lies with the fact that it is not a disease, per say, rather it is a hyperactive state of the immune system that must be controlled (Wallace, 2008). The problem with a wrong diagnosis is not the loss of time; rather it is the increase in suffering that medications cause. Since the body assumes even the host to be an infection, any external bodies including medicines will also evoke a response from the immune system (Kammer, 1999). As such, a wrong diagnosis will only increase the suffering of the patient.

Current trends in care/treatment While treatments are available, they are not as effective at the later stages. This goes to say that while the disease cannot be cured, the experience can be made less painful by appropriate treatment (Isenberg & Manzi, 2008). It has been noted that alternative medications are more effective in certain cases (Hughes, 2000). In addition to medications, people are turning to other healing practices to try to improve their health. These diverse therapies include homeopathy, chiropractic, traditional Chinese medicine (such as acupuncture and Tai Chi), Ayurveda, naturopathy, massage therapy, meditation, biofeedback, herbs or other supplements. These practices, however, have not been through the scientific testing and clinical research that all conventional medicines undergo, so it is difficult to know their effectiveness in treating lupus. Right now, CellCept and Rituxan are in what are called Phase II or III studies. This means that they are thought to be promising but we are still waiting for study results to be sure exactly where they might or might not fit into the care of most lupus patients (Lupus Foundation of America, Inc. 2012).
Cultural Sensitive Care Asian and African Americans are the cultures mostly affected by Lupus. While there is no specific pattern to the emergence of the disease, women seem to be the most affected. In terms of the age groups, it appears that the young and middle-aged people are more susceptible to the disease (Moore, 2000). While Asians, African Americans, and women are the focus of the study, similar tendencies have been observed in the Indo-Asian people and people from the Central Asian ancestry (Lahita & Phillips, 2004).
References:
Ginzer, E., & Tayar, J. (2012). Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (Lupus). American College of Rheumatology.
Hughes, G. (2000). Lupus: The Facts. Oxford University Press, USA.
Isenberg, D., & Manzi, S. (2008). Lupus. Oxford University Press, USA.
Kammer, G.M. (1999). Lupus: Molecular and Cellular Pathogenesis. Humana Press.
Lahita, R. G., & Phillips, R. H. (2004). Lupus Q&A: Everything You Need to Know. Penguin.
Moore, S. (2000). Lupus: Alternative Therapies That Work. Inner Traditions/ Bear & Co.
Rhines, K. (2012). Lupus. Twenty-First Century Books.
Wallace, D. J. (2008). The Lupus Book: A Guide for Patients and Their Families. Oxford University Press
Akley, B.J., & Ladwig, G.B. (2011). Nursing Diagnosis Hndbook: An Evidence-Based Guide to Planning Care (9th edition ed.). (B.J. Ackley, Ed.) St. Louis, Missouri: Mosby Elsevier.
A.D.A.M. Medical Encyclopedia. Atlanta (GA): A.D.A.M.; 2011. Systemic lupus erythematosus; Disseminated lupus erythematosus; SLE; Lupus; Lupus erthematosus; Discoid lupus. Retrieved from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001471
Lupus Foundation of America, Inc. (2012). Complementary and Alternative Medicines and Therapies. Retrieved from: http://www.lupus.org/webmodules/webarticlesnet/templates/new_learntreating.aspx?articleid=2250&zoneid=525