Dorothy FarrarAutoimmune disease
Autoimmune diseases are usually the first disease states that the immune system of the affected person has triggered itself. In the process, one’s own body cells are genetically recognized as foreign and attacked; Autoimmune diseases are therefore incurable.
What are autoimmune diseases?
In the autoimmune disease, the body’s own cells and tissue structures are no longer recognized as belonging to the body, but as germs. The body forms defense cells against itself and, in the worst case, destroys important types of tissue.
Mild autoimmune diseases can often be treated symptomatically to such an extent that they only minimally limit the quality of life of the affected person. Serious autoimmune diseases, on the other hand, can have a severe impact on life. Common autoimmune diseases are Bechterew’s disease , arteriosclerosis , Crohn’s disease (chronic intestinal inflammation) or arthritis .
causes
The exact causes of an autoimmune disease have not yet been finally clarified. In most cases, a genetic defect is present from birth; there are, however, external triggers in the room.Autoimmune diseases could then be in the genetic code, but whether and when they ever break out remains a question of environmental influences. What these consist of and whether they have the same effect on every potentially autoimmune patient is also still questionable.
One of many possible hypotheses states that every human develops a cell surface that is characteristic of him; if this structure is too similar to the surface of a pathogen, an autoimmune disease can occur. Excessive hygiene measures could also play a role. In this case, the immune system is not challenged by hygiene and then turns against its own body.
Typical autoimmune diseases
When to the doctor?
Signs and symptoms of an autoimmune disease are diverse and very individual depending on the disease at hand. Basically, a doctor should always be consulted if a feeling of general malaise occurs and lasts for several days. If the person concerned suffers from tiredness, weakness, sleep disorders or if his usual level of performance and strength drops noticeably, he should undergo a medical examination.
In the event of an increase in existing symptoms or the appearance of new symptoms, a visit to the doctor is always advisable, even if there is no apparent connection between the symptoms. If the person concerned is particularly susceptible to viral diseases or suffers from concentration problems, it is advisable to consult a doctor. Emotional problems, depressive states and sensory disturbances must be medically clarified if they last for several weeks.
A feeling of numbness or tingling on the skin should be evaluated and treated if it recurs regularly or if it spreads throughout the body. If there are skin changes, itching or vision and perception disorders, a doctor’s visit is necessary.
Muscle weakness, cardiac arrhythmias and persistent gastrointestinal complaints must be examined and treated by a doctor. Pain, bone discomfort, movement disorders, or swelling and lumps in the body should be evaluated by a doctor if they occur without an apparent reason.
symptoms and course
The signs of an autoimmune disease are completely different from clinical picture to clinical picture. Sometimes the first physical changes come very quickly; others develop so insidiously and slowly that the affected person hardly notices that he is ill.
Initially, patients report various symptoms that doctors do not correctly assess or only assess correctly at a later stage. There are often harmless symptoms such as a rash , itching , tiredness or tingling in the hands and feet.
Bulbar neuritis, for example, is one of many autoimmune diseases. This leads to a visual disturbance , with a gray haze covering the clear vision, which can happen so slowly that the affected person only perceives the autoimmune disease when it already needs urgent treatment.
Diagnose
The diagnosis of an autoimmune disease is often a differential diagnosis, which means that other physical causes or infectious diseases have first been ruled out. The patient’s blood is then examined for suspected autoimmune disease and the number of serological autoantibodies is measured.
They indicate that the body is fighting an invader; but if none can be found and the external symptoms also match a suspected autoimmune disease, then treatment can be started.
complications
There are different types of autoimmune diseases that can lead to a wide variety of complications. An autoimmune disease of the thyroid gland, for example, can lead to both underfunction (Hashimoto’s thyroiditis) and overfunction (Graves’ disease). In Hashimoto’s disease, it can lead to encephalopathy characterized by psychosis and seizures. The hyperfunction can end in a thyrotoxic crisis, with the affected person showing elevated temperature, neurological and gastrointestinal symptoms. A racing heart also often occurs. This can often result in death if left untreated.
Autoimmune diseases can also affect the liver. It can lead to scarring of the liver, which eventually leads to cirrhosis. The affected person shows problems with the formation of the proteins. Consequences are edema and disturbances in coagulation. Varicose veins in the esophagus and hemorrhoids are also frequent consequences of liver cirrhosis. The likelihood of developing liver cancer is also drastically increased.
In the case of the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis, the muscles of those affected become increasingly weak until they finally become disabled and therefore in need of care. Fecal and urinary incontinence are often observed. MS patients also suffer more frequently from respiratory infections such as pneumonia or bronchitis. The nerve disease also frequently leads to a change in the personality of the patient.
treatment and therapy
Treating an autoimmune disease is difficult because both the symptoms and the autoimmune disease itself must be addressed. Autoimmune diseases have not yet been cured, because they have a genetic cause and something would have to be changed in the incorrectly coded gene in order to be cured – even modern medicine has not got that far.
However, the effects of most autoimmune diseases can be treated effectively, allowing those affected to lead a relatively normal lifestyle. In addition, autoimmune diseases are treated with immunosuppressive drugs , which inhibit the action of the immune system – this allows it to produce less autoantibodies and at least makes the patient feel better.
However, this also increases the risk of contracting infections , since the weak immune system could no longer defend itself effectively against them either. Since autoimmune diseases almost always occur in flares and are then particularly bad, the stressful immunosuppressive drugs are only administered when a flare is recognizable again, i.e. the symptoms worsen and more autoantibodies than can otherwise be detected in the blood. Depending on the patient’s medical condition and autoimmune disease, hospitalization may be necessary for the duration of the administration of the immunosuppressants in order to prevent infections during this time.
prevention
Autoimmune diseases cannot be prevented. They probably arise from the genetic disposition and an external trigger; a mixture referred to as “bad luck and bad genes”. Until these triggers are known and a genetic disposition to autoimmune diseases can be identified, their onset cannot be prevented.Some autoimmune diseases run in families and other family members have also suffered from them. In such cases, relatives can understand whether they could also be affected. Then it would of course be helpful to avoid known triggers.
Most autoimmune diseases are related to stress , use of unhealthy substances such as alcohol and tobacco, or exposure to substances that are generally considered unhealthy.
However, until a genetic predisposition to autoimmune disease can be proven, everyone is recommended to lead a lifestyle that is as healthy as possible, as this contributes to increased well-being in the long term and also reduces the risk of autoimmune disease if the worst comes to the worst.
Hello and welcome to my Health Guide & Encyclopedia! My name is Dorothy Farrar, and I'm the founder and main author of this platform.
My passion for health and wellness started at a young age when I became interested in the connection between the food we eat and the way we feel. This fascination led me to study nutrition and dietetics in college, where I learned about the importance of a balanced diet and the impact of various nutrients on the body.