What Is Lupus?

So few have heard of it, yet worldwide it is more common than leukaemia, multiple sclerosis and muscular dystrophy.

Some 50,000 people are believed to suffer with the disease in the UK of whom 90% are female. Men and young children can also be affected by lupus.

Systemic lupus causes the body's immune system to go into overdrive and start to attack itself.  The symptoms are many and varied, and the illness often seems to mimic other diseases.  This gives rise to difficulty in diagnosis and the condition can be overlooked, sometimes for years, unless the GP or consultant is alert to the possibility of lupus.  Achieving an earlier diagnosis of lupus allows a better opportunity for control of the disease.

See also:

  Lupus UK Site which contains a great deal of informative material about Lupus, the disease, its diagnosis, treatments, etc.

  The Other Links page here on our own site, which contains links to many other useful and informative web sites.