Question:
I have been reading your group for about a week and am getting more and more discouraged with what is to come. My housemate who has been diagnoised with bi-polar mental condition and has been taking everything for it, now has skin lupus but with how she is feeling I think it is only a matter of time before she goes SLE. Her doctor treats her like a hypochrontirc. Her muscles hurt, her joints ache, she has had gastro-intestinal attacks and kidney infections, but until the test says she has it, he says he can do nothing for her. Her dermatologist has but her on predisone (sp.) and her psychitirist has her on some killer pain pills. All this along with 3 or 4 strong behavioral medicines like prosac, etc. Any help on where to go for more help than what her internist gives???? Are we in for quite a ride? Will this progress to SLE? I am reading ‘The Lupus Book" by Daniel Wallace. Where should we go?
Response:
In article <3651f3f…@news.iglou.com>, "E.G. Clark" <egcl…@iglou.com> wrote: – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I have been reading your group for about a week and am getting more and more > discouraged with what is to come. My housemate who has been diagnoised with > bi-polar mental condition and has been taking everything for it, now has > skin lupus but with how she is feeling I think it is only a matter of time > before she goes SLE. > Her doctor treats her like a hypochrontirc. Her muscles hurt, her joints > ache, she has had gastro-intestinal attacks and kidney infections, but until > the test says she has it, he says he can do nothing for her. Her > dermatologist has but her on predisone (sp.) and her psychitirist has her on > some killer pain pills. All this along with 3 or 4 strong behavioral > medicines like prosac, etc. > Any help on where to go for more help than what her internist gives???? Are > we in for quite a ride? > Will this progress to SLE? I am reading ‘The Lupus Book" by Daniel Wallace. > Where should we go?
It’s considered "rare" for Discoid (skin) Lupus to progress to SLE – but it’s possible that a) she was diagnosed b) it’s not as rare as they think – they used to think only about 50,000 people in the U.S. had SLE – now they estimate it to be between 1-2 million. It’t bull that he "can’t do anything about it". He doesn’t have to diagnose her to treat her symptoms. I know several folks with undiagnosed SLE that their docs feel the symptoms warrant similar treatement (including plaquinel and methotrexate and prednisone). Try contacting the LFA, and look into some of the online forums for support and a better understanding for both of you and her doctors. Contact your nearest LFA chapter and request info on doctors that treat lupus and it’s variants confidently and competently. http://internet-plaza.net/lupus/ Best of luck and feel free to write more – I’m pressed for time tonight or you’d get the more typical kc cat ramble (lucky you eh?). My thoughts and concerns are with you both. kc cat ———–== Posted via Deja News, The Discussion Network ==———- http://www.dejanews.com/ Search, Read, Discuss, or Start Your Own
Response:
Dear E.G. Clark, Please go to: http://www.infotech.demon.co.uk Read it carefully and print it out. Dr. Hughes is very well known in the field of rheumatology in general and lupus in particular, he is respected all over the Globe.. You’ll see there that even the bi-polar can be a manifestation of lupus and usualy preceed other manifestations. Then take the outprint to the doctor and demand the entire antibodies panel to be assayed, as it can be lupus, it maybe APS, or both. Yet, your housemate deserve a better treatment that the amature one she is getting now. HTH, Boaz http://www.acor.org/lupus/ http://www.zeta.org.au/~sioux/mira always consult your medical practitioner
Response:
Hi, <<My housemate who has been diagnoised with bi-polar mental condition and has been taking everything for it, now has skin lupus but with how she is feeling I think it is only a matter of time before she goes SLE.>> Sometimes, drugs used in treatment of bipolar disorder cause SLE, was this possibility looked into? Here is a reference: TI: Carbamazepine-induced systemic lupus erythematosus. AU: Schmidt-S; Welcker-M; Greil-W; Schattenkirchner-M SO: Br-J-Psychiatry. 1992 Oct; 161: 560-1 AB: A 21-year-old woman suffering from bipolar affective disorder developed systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) with characteristic laboratory findings, 18 months after starting carbamazepine maintenance treatment. SLE receded after withdrawal of carbamazepine and treatment with anti-inflammatory drugs. Although both the spontaneous occurrence of SLE and the psychosis as a sign of CNS involvement of SLE cannot be excluded, SLE could be considered as an adverse effect of carbamazepine. However, as you can see, sometimes the bipolar disorder is just the first manifestation of lupus. HTH, Boaz http://www.acor.org/lupus/ http://www.zeta.org.au/~sioux/mira always consult your medical practitioner
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