Lupus—Lung Diseases

When you breathe, your lungs take in oxygen from the air and deliver it to the bloodstream. The cells in your body need oxygen to work and grow. During a normal day, you breathe nearly 25,000 times. People with lung disease have difficulty breathing. Millions of people in the U.S. have lung disease. If all types of lung disease are lumped together, it is the number three killer in the United States.

The term lung disease refers to many disorders affecting the lungs, such as asthma, COPD, infections like influenza, pneumonia and tuberculosis, lung cancer, and many other breathing problems. Some lung diseases can lead to respiratory failure.

Dept. of Health and Human Services Office on Women’s Health

Alveolar abnormalities (Medical Encyclopedia)
Blood gases (Medical Encyclopedia)
Breath sounds (Medical Encyclopedia)
Chemical pneumonitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
Chest tube insertion (Medical Encyclopedia)
Coughing up blood (Medical Encyclopedia)
Lung disease (Medical Encyclopedia)
Lung PET scan (Medical Encyclopedia)
Pulmonary edema (Medical Encyclopedia)
Pulmonary function tests (Medical Encyclopedia)
Solitary pulmonary nodule (Medical Encyclopedia)

Also called: Discoid lupus, SLE, Subacute cutaneous lupus, Systemic lupus erythematosus

What is lupus?

Lupus is an autoimmune disease. This means that your immune system attacks healthy cells and tissues by mistake. This can damage many parts of the body, including the joints, skin, kidneys, heart, lungs, blood vessels, and brain.

There are several kinds of lupus

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the most common type. It can be mild or severe, and can affect many parts of the body.
Discoid lupus causes a red rash that doesn’t go away
Subacute cutaneous lupus causes sores after being out in the sun
Drug-induced lupus is caused by certain medicines. It usually goes away when you stop taking the medicine.
Neonatal lupus, which is rare, affects newborns. It is probably caused by certain antibodies from the mother.

Who gets lupus?

Anyone can get lupus, but women are most at risk. Lupus is two to three times more common in African American women than in Caucasian women. It’s also more common in Hispanic, Asian, and Native American women. African American and Hispanic women are more likely to have severe forms of lupus.

What causes lupus?

The cause of lupus is not known.

What are the symptoms of lupus?

Lupus can have many symptoms, and they differ from person to person. Some of the more common ones are

Pain or swelling in joints
Muscle pain
Fever with no known cause
Red rashes, most often on the face (also called the “butterfly rash”)
Chest pain when taking a deep breath
Hair loss
Pale or purple fingers or toes
Sensitivity to the sun
Swelling in legs or around eyes
Mouth ulcers
Swollen glands
Feeling very tired

Symptoms may come and go. When you are having symptoms, it is called a flare. Flares can range from mild to severe. New symptoms may appear at any time.

How do I know if I have lupus?

There is no single test to diagnose lupus, and it’s often mistaken for other diseases. So it may take months or years for a doctor to diagnose it. Your doctor may use many tools to make a diagnosis:

Medical history
Complete exam
Blood tests
Skin biopsy (looking at skin samples under a microscope)
Kidney biopsy (looking at tissue from your kidney under a microscope)

What are the treatments for lupus?

There is no cure for lupus, but medicines and lifestyle changes can help control it.

People with lupus often need to see different doctors. You will have a primary care doctor and a rheumatologist (a doctor who specializes in the diseases of joints and muscles). Which other specialists you see depends on how lupus affects your body. For example, if lupus damages your heart or blood vessels, you would see a cardiologist.

Your primary care doctor should coordinate care between your different health care providers and treat other problems as they come up. Your doctor will develop a treatment plan to fit your needs. You and your doctor should review the plan often to be sure it is working. You should report new symptoms to your doctor right away so that your treatment plan can be changed if needed.

The goals of the treatment plan are to

Prevent flares
Treat flares when they occur
Reduce organ damage and other problems

Treatments may include drugs to

Reduce swelling and pain
Prevent or reduce flares
Help the immune system
Reduce or prevent damage to joints
Balance the hormones

Besides taking medicines for lupus, you may need to take medicines for problems that are related to lupus such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or infection.

Alternative treatments are those that are not part of standard treatment. At this time, no research shows that alternative medicine can treat lupus. Some alternative or complementary approaches may help you cope or reduce some of the stress associated with living with a chronic illness. You should talk to your doctor before trying any alternative treatments.

How can I cope with lupus?

It is important to take an active role in your treatment. It helps to learn more about lupus – being able to spot the warning signs of a flare can help you prevent the flare or make the symptoms less severe.

It is also important to find ways to cope with the stress of having lupus. Exercising and finding ways to relax may make it easier for you to cope. A good support system can also help.

NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases