What organ systems does lupus affect?

Lupus is a disease that occurs when your body's immune system attacks your own tissues and organs (autoimmune disease). Inflammation caused by lupus can affect many different body systems — including your joints, skin, kidneys, blood cells, brain, heart and lungs.

What organ does lupus affect the most?

Kidneys About one half of people with lupus experience kidney involvement, and the kidney has become the most extensively studied organ affected by lupus.

What effect does lupus have on organs?

This means it causes your body's immune system to attack healthy tissues and organs instead of only attacking foreign substances that could harm your body. The disease can cause widespread damage to areas of the body, including the joints, skin, heart, blood vessels, brain, kidneys, bones, and lungs.

Which body systems can be affected in patients with systemic lupus?

Does lupus affect the digestive system?

Lupus can slow the digestive process, and this can cause a wide variety of GI issues. Digestive problems may be the direct result of an attack by the immune system or from medications to treat lupus. These digestive difficulties include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or constipation.

Lupus: Your body's immune system attacks your own tissues and organs

Can lupus shut down your organs?

SLE may also affect other organs such as the muscles (myositis), the lung (pneumonitis), and the heart (myocarditis). Overall, SLE symptoms and signs are caused by local inflammation in various organs that if left untreated may result in permanent organ damage.

Does lupus make your stomach big?

Lupus and the intestines

Lupus can rarely cause vasculitis (inflammation of the blood vessels) in the intestines, sometimes called lupus enteritis. Symptoms include: Abdominal pain (pain in the belly area) Feeling very full or bloated.

Does lupus affect the nervous system?

Lupus can affect both the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord) and the peripheral nervous system. Lupus may attack the nervous system via antibodies that bind to nerve cells or the blood vessels that feed them, or by interrupting the blood flow to nerves.

What does lupus do to the brain?

Lupus and the central nervous system

Symptoms include: Confusion and trouble concentrating (sometimes called lupus brain fog) Seizures (sudden, unusual movements or behavior) Stroke (blocked blood flow in the brain that causes brain cells to die)

Does lupus affect the circulatory system?

Lupus can affect the cardiovascular system, which includes your heart and blood vessels. In fact, cardiovascular disease, not lupus itself, is the number one cause of death in people with SLE. Therefore, it is very important that you take steps to maintain optimal cardiovascular health.

What are the most severe symptoms of lupus?

What are three triggers of lupus?

Common triggers include:

Overwork and not enough rest. Being out in the sun or having close exposure to fluorescent or halogen light. Infection. Injury.

What are 4 complications of lupus?

What are the four stages of lupus?

What is the most serious form of lupus?

What are the different types of lupus? There are several different types of lupus: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the most common and most serious type of lupus. SLE affects all parts of the body.

What is the number one symptom of lupus?

The most common lupus symptoms (which are the same for men and women) are: Extreme fatigue (feeling tired all the time) Pain or swelling in the joints. Swelling in the hands, feet, or around the eyes.

What is lupus hair?

But some people with lupus develop round (discoid) lesions on the scalp. Because these discoid lesions scar your hair follicles, they do cause permanent hair loss. Lupus can also cause the scalp hair along your hairline to become fragile and break off easily, leaving you with a ragged appearance known as lupus hair.

Can lupus cause anger issues?

People with lupus may experience unpredictable changes in moods and personality traits. This can include feelings of anger and irritability. These may be related to the disease process or, in some cases, the use of corticosteroid medications.

What should you not do if you have lupus?

What are the signs that lupus is getting worse?

During a flare, some of the symptoms you already had get worse or brand-new symptoms appear. It could be a light rash that spreads or gets darker or mouth sores that suddenly show up. A flare is when you have an increase in your lupus disease activity that can be measured.

What are the symptoms of lupus attacking nervous system?

People with lupus can experience bouts of memory loss, headaches, strokes and cognitive dysfunction, which generally means difficulty concentrating or reasoning. These symptoms arise when lupus affects the body's nervous system.

Does lupus cause brain fog or memory loss?

People with lupus can have cognitive symptoms, like having a hard time thinking clearly or remembering things. This is also called “brain fog” or “lupus fog,” and it often comes and goes over time. In some people, lupus fog can be present for many years.

Does lupus make you gassy?

If lupus leads to IBS, it can result in additional symptoms, such as gas or constipation. Lupus or its treatments can also affect other areas of the digestive tract.

What causes lupus to act up?

Lupus flare-ups can be triggered by stress, infection, or missed doses of medication. To prevent a lupus flare, focus on your medication schedule, self-care, and sun protection. Hydroxychloroquine is the best medication to help prevent lupus flares.

Does lupus change your appetite?

Weight changes — Lupus can sometimes cause weight loss or weight gain. Weight loss may be unintentional and due to decreased appetite or problems with the digestive system (see 'Digestive system' below). It can also be a side effect of some medications used to treat lupus.