One in 2000 people suffer from lupus in Canada. An essentially female disease while 10 times more women than men are affected. With its multiple and cyclical symptoms, lupus “should be better known in particular because it affects women between 20 and 40 years old, in the middle of their reproductive period”, explains Dr.re Évelyne Vinet, rheumatologist at the McGill University Health Center.
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Nurse Karine Trudeau was only 14 when she experienced her first symptoms of lupus. She wanted to open her bedroom door, but her hands were unable to grasp the handle, they were so stiff and painful. “At another time, I was trying to get a drink from the cupboard. But I had to raise my right arm, helping me with my left arm to grab the glass…”, says Ms.me Trudeau.
Arthritis-like pains were the first symptoms of lupus for this resident of the South Shore of Montreal. But the disease manifests itself in different ways in those affected, earning it the nickname “disease with a thousand faces”, explains Dr.re The wine.
“It’s a chronic autoimmune disease that can affect several organs,” says the specialist. Some patients will have joint pain. Others have heart or skin damage, including lesions that may resemble wolf bites in some cases. Or, more frequently, kidney problems which, in the most serious cases, can lead to end-stage renal failure and dialysis or even transplantation, explains Dr.re The wine.
But for many people with lupus, the most common symptom is severe fatigue and pain. “The disease is not apparent. Patients have to verbalize it themselves. In the workplace, it can be difficult…”, notes the Dre Vinet. “People forget that we have this condition, adds Mme Trudeau. Me, I’m always a little tired. There are days when I hurt. But you don’t always feel understood. »
Cyclic
Symptoms of lupus present themselves cyclically. Different treatments exist and allow to space out the “crises” and even to control the disease. But no treatment can completely cure it.
Pregnant women with lupus are more likely to experience complications during pregnancy, such as having a premature baby, says Dr.re The wine.
Why are women more affected by lupus? Mainly for genetics and hormone issues. According to the Dre Vinet, it is important that more awareness be made about this disease. Among other things, so that doctors who see patients presenting with various associated symptoms do not hesitate to consider lupus in their diagnostic possibilities.