Did you Know the Major Causes of Lupus? Learn More About this Hard to Diagnose Disease here

While speaking of diseases, people typically don’t take into account how difficult some might be to spot. When going through a diagnosis, either self or by a medical professional, key symptoms are what one looks out for.

But, what to do when the symptoms of a disease are not visible to the naked eye? Lupus is one such disease that can affect literally any part of the body and still remain hidden for a long time. This is the truth for the almost 1.5 million Americans who live with some type of lupus.

Deposit Photos | Millions of people suffer from lupus without being aware

Lupus is an autoimmune disease. Basically, in such diseases, healthy cells and tissues start getting attacked by the infected person’s immune system. About 70 percent of the time, lupus is found in a major organ of the body, such as the kidneys, lungs, heart, or brain. The worst thing about the disease is that there are no causes or cures yet discovered for it.

All things considered, there has been ample research on the triggers of this immune system condition. Read on to find out the potential reasons for lupus that analysts are diving into and how to treat someone once they are diagnosed:

Biological Triggers

Heredity

An individual has a 20 times higher danger of getting lupus if they have kin with the illness. Many variations in genes have been connected with the development of the disease. Some doctors think that it is a two-way street wherein the lupus gene and lack of protective genes give way to the disease.

Race

Lupus is found twice to thrice as much in women of color, including Latinos, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asians, African Americans, and Pacific Islanders. A study conducted in 2014 also confirmed lupus to be found in 1 out of every 537 women of color.

Hormones

9 out of 10 women determined to have the disease are somewhere in the range of 15 and 44 years of age. One main explanation behind the disparity is that hormones like prolactin and estrogen may cause an inflammatory pathway known as type 1 interferon to go off balance.

Deposit Photos | Genes are a big determinant of lupus

Environmental Triggers

UV light

UV light can harm any individual’s cells; however, individuals with lupus react more sensitively to it. It has not been distinguished as an immediate reason for the disease, yet UV light can cause cells to modify themselves in a manner that is known to be a threat to the immune system.

Infectious diseases

Different viral diseases have been connected to lupus flares, including hepatitis A, herpes simplex infection, and human parvovirus. Epstein-Barr, the infection that causes mononucleosis, has been concentrated on specifically, and researchers believe that unusual immune system response is caused when antibodies are produced post-exposure.

Changes in atmosphere

Changes in the atmosphere, humidity, wind patterns, temperature, and barometric pressure are unequivocally connected with explicit types of organ flares in lupus. In any case, not one variable is related to all flares. For instance, pollution has been connected to lung flares, and temperature changes may affect neurologic flares and rashes, while moistness is related to joint flares.

How can lupus be cured?

When you’ve been determined to have lupus, your treatment will generally rely upon the seriousness of the infection. If you have gentle to direct manifestations, your primary care physician will probably begin you on antimalarial drugs, similar to hydroxychloroquine, to lessen torment, skin rashes, and different indications with an end goal to ensure organs and forestall harm to the body.

Deposit Photos | Lupus has no cure but it can be treated once diagnosed

Another choice is corticosteroids, which are regularly directed to assist patients with working through a flare since the medication works rapidly. All in all, lupus can be dubious to treat because there is no definitive cure to the disease, but doctors can help by providing medication that reduces its effects.