Autoimmune Disease

Talking with Kate last night, I was able to vent my frustrations regarding my health (or current lack thereof). Sadly for Kate, fortunately for me (because she understands), she suffers from an autoimmune disease. As does her mother. As does my father. As does my sister. As does my paternal grand-mother. Are we seeing a trend here?

Oh...let's not forget my step-mother, her sister and my mother-in-law.

Oodles of people walk around each day battling this general affliction. You may not be aware of it. You may not understand how painful the illness may be, how exhausting the illness may be, how tiring the illness may be, how frustrating and mysterious the illness may be.

Try to muster up a kernel of sympathy for anyone who is not well. Illness is stressful enough without having to feel compelled to prove to someone that you are sick, answer tons of questions and slap on a happy face to reduce the worry of others.

Per Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions website, the definition of autoimmunity is:

The healthy human body is equipped with a powerful set of tools for resisting the onslaught of invading microorganisms (such as viruses, bacteria, and parasites). Unfortunately, this set of tools, known as the immune system, sometimes goes awry and attacks the body itself. These misdirected immune responses are referred to as autoimmunity, which can be demonstrated by the presence of autoantibodies or T lymphocytes reactive with host antigens

The definition of autoimmune disease (in part) is:

Autoimmunity is present in everyone to some extent. It is usually harmless and probably a universal phenomenon of vertebrate life. However, autoimmunity can be the cause of a broad spectrum of human illnesses, known as autoimmune diseases. This concept of autoimmunity as the cause of human illness is relatively new, and it was not accepted into the mainstream of medical thinking until the 1950s and 1960s. Autoimmune diseases are defined as diseases in which the progression from benign autoimmunity to pathogenic autoimmunity occurs. This progression is determined by both genetic influences and environmental triggers. The concept of autoimmunity as the actual cause of human illness (rather than a consequence or harmless accompaniment) can be used to establish criteria that define a disease as an autoimmune disease. By this approach, Rose and Bona (Immunology Today, 14: 426-430, 1993) have distinguished the evidence for an autoimmune etiology at three different levels: direct, indirect, and circumstantial...

Broad Spectrum of Autoimmune Disease:

Autoimmune diseases are a major threat to the health of all Americans. At least ten million Americans suffer from the more than eighty illnesses caused by autoimmunity. They are a special threat to women; about 75% of the patients are women. Autoimmune diseases are among the ten leading causes of death among women in all age groups up to 65. The bar graph shows the prevalence of the top 10 autoimmune diseases in the United States in 1996 (from Jacobson DL et al. Clin Immunol Immunopathol, 84: 223-243, 1997).


Here is a list of some autoimmune diseases impacting people today.

Addison's Disease
Alopecia Areata
Ankylosing Spondilitis
Antiphospholipid Syndrome
Aplastic Anemia
Autoimmune Hearing Loss
Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemias
Autoimmune Hepatitis
Autoimmune Hypoparathyroidism
Autoimmune Hypophysitis
Autoimmune Lymphoproliferative
Autoimmune Myocarditis
Autoimmune Oophoritis
Autoimmune Orchitis
Autoimmune Polyendocrinopathy
Bechet's Disease
Bullous Pemphigoid
Celiac Disease
Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy
Churg-Strauss Syndrome
Epidermolysis Bullosa Acquisita
Giant Cells Arteritis
Goodpasture's Syndrome
Graves' Disease
Guillan-Barre Syndrome
Hashimoto's Thyroiditis
Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura
IgA Nephropathy
Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Kawasaki's Disease
Meniere's Syndrome
Mooren's Ulcer
Multiple Sclerosis
Myasthenia Gravis
Pemphigus Foliaceous
Pemphigus Vulgaris
Pernicious Anemia
Polyarteritis Nodosa
Polyglandular Autoimmune Syndrome Type 1 (PAS-1)
Polyglandular Autoimmune Syndrome Type 2 (PAS-2)
Polyglandular Autoimmune syndrome Type 3 (PAS 3)
Polymyositis/dermatomyositis
Primary Biliary Cirrhosis
Reiter's Syndrome
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Sarcoidosis
Scleroderma
Sjogren's Syndrome
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Takayasu's Arteritis
Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus
Vitiligo
Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada Disease
Wegener's Granulomatosis

I have Raynaud's Phenomenon. I have been living with it since I was 19. I think I have endured (maybe) four flare-ups in fifteen years. That's really not so shabby...until recently. I have to be very cautious in cold temperatures. Some specialists have gone so far as to recommend my wearing mittens and socks in the freezer section of the grocery store. I typically wrap a Frappucino in napkins so my skin does not come in direct contact with a cold surface. These are precautions I can take to keep myself humming along.

I'm now a ticking time bomb for Lupus. I have the distinct pleasure of now being annually tested for this lovely one, as well. Given a choice, I would opt for the none of the above. Knowing that is not a possibility, I will hope I will be limited to living a life of mittens, hats, scarves, socks and a very strange blood cell count (antinuclear antibodies and elevated WBC).