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Systemic lupus is a chronic and presently-incurable
illness of the immune system, a condition in which the body’s defence
mechanism begins to attack itself through an excess of antibodies in
the blood stream causing inflammation and damage in the joints, muscles
and other organs.
The name “systemic lupus” implies that almost any organ
or system within the body might be affected and lupus is perhaps the
classical multi-symptom illness, deserving of far greater priority and
investigation by the medical community.
Discoid lupus is a condition of the skin alone, and in a very few patients
can develop into systemic lupus.
Lupus may be triggered by various means and can present in a bewildering
number of ways, even to the extent of mimicking other diseases such as
rheumatoid arthritis or multiple sclerosis.
The causes of lupus is not positively known though research has provided
evidence implicating heredity, hormones and infections including viruses.
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