This autoimmune condition requires multidisciplinary care, rigorous follow-up, and patient commitment.
Dr. Óscar Soto, rheumatologist and president of the Rheumatic Diseases Foundation and Dr. Ricardo Gago, rheumatologist and past president of the Puerto Rico Association of Rheumatologists. Photo: Journal of Medicine and Public Health. Fabiola Plaza.
“90% of our patients diagnosed with Lupus or who comes by evaluation of the same have symptoms of arthralgia, between fatigue and tiredness, which is almost certainly a patient with systemic disease, “I assure you in an exclusive interview with the Journal of Medicine and Public Health, Dr. Ricardo Gago, past president of the Association of Rheumatologists, “
Dr. Gago indicated that the detection of Lupus It occurs due to the manifestation of associated symptoms, where a clinical follow-up must be had, since the organs can be filled with liquids, generating failures or damages in the patient. In the case of the lungs, initially there is oppressive pain with shortness of breath and even internal involvement leading to fibrosis.
For his part, Dr. Óscar Soto, rheumatologist and president of the Foundation for Rheumatic Diseases, indicated that “patients with LupusWhen they have chest pain or trouble breathing, it’s always important that they can seek help because it can certainly be an emergency.”
According to experts, the inflammation that occurs in organs such as the heart, pericarditis, or in the lungs, pleurisy, are warning signs to identify a disease such as lupuswhich is inflammatory disease rheumatologyis cataloged as the ‘disease with a thousand faces’, due to the fact that the symptoms are so mild and varied that they are normally treated as symptoms of some other pathology, for this reason the comprehensive care of the patient from various areas of medicine is vital, achieving a diagnosis that avoids permanent damage to the patient.
Both specialists agree that it must be clear that where patients with Lupus They are: the skin, joints and vital organs. On the skin, a specialized follow-up by dermatology is required to monitor each symptom that arises from this condition, likewise on the joints, the follow-up of a rheumatologist is needed; but care from multiple disciplines such as nephrology, nutrition, pulmonology and psychiatry, among others, is certainly necessary.
Symptoms of Lupus
The symptomatology of this condition is diverse, so multiple manifestations can occur that affect each system of the human body of patients. The most associated are:
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chest pain when breathing deeply;
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butterfly-shaped skin rash on the cheeks and nose;
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blood clotting problems.
It should be noted that, when a patient has arthritis as an isolated disease, it generates damage to the joints by modifying the structure of the bones, but in the case of arthritis caused by Lupusthis is not “erosive, it does not cause damage to the bones or deformities and if it occurs it is due to damage to the ligaments and structures” as explained by Dr. Óscar Soto.
When the subject of Lupusit is clarified that it is an individualized disease, each patient develops a specific symptomatology, which must also be accompanied by the different specialists.
In the field of nutrition, it is important to know that a good diet is a complementary part of pharmacological treatment, strengthening the immune system, good habits become an ally for adherence to them.
Anti-inflammatory recommendations:
Omega-3 acids, found in:
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Fatty fish, salmon, tuna, walnuts, flaxseeds, flaxseed powder, smoothies, cooked cereals, avocado.
The consumption of calcium (dairy derivatives, spinach, almonds) and also vitamin D (salmon, eggs, mushrooms) is necessary to avoid other pathologies.
Folic acid, found in:
Taking into account that the most common symptoms arise from the inflammation of the organs and parts of the body, it is necessary to avoid and make a responsible consumption of all foods that are inflammatory, an aspect that is individualized, since each patient must recognize those foods that harms him, always from a professional accompaniment in nutrition.