What is Autoimmune Disease?

What is Autoimmune Disease? Types, Symptoms, Risk Factors and Treatment

Autoimmune disorders are health issues that occur when your immune system attacks your body rather than protecting it. Typically, your immune system functions as your body's natural protection system. It automatically detects substances that should not be in your body (such as viruses, bacteria, or toxins) and sends out white blood cells to destroy them before they can cause harm or illness.

If you have an autoimmune disease, your immune system functions abnormally. It becomes overactive and attacks and damages the healthy tissues, leading to various health issues. In fact, the immune system is unable to distinguish between invaders and normal cells.

Keep reading to learn about the types of autoimmune diseases, symptoms, risk factors, and treatment options.

What are the Various Types of Autoimmune Diseases?

Currently, over 100 distinct autoimmune disorders have been recognized. They can affect almost every tissue or organ in the body, depending on where the immune system fails, including:

• Joints
• Muscles
• Blood vessels
• Skin
• Digestive system
• Endocrine system
• Nervous system

What are Autoimmune Disease Symptoms?

Autoimmune diseases can cause a wide range of symptoms, often affecting nearly any part of the body. Here is a detailed overview:

• Some conditions may lead to muscle weakness, while others impact specific organs or systems. For example, rheumatoid arthritis typically results in joint pain, swelling, and stiffness.
• Type 1 diabetes affects blood sugar regulation, causing elevated glucose levels.
• Certain autoimmune disorders may also impair vision, reflecting the diverse and sometimes unpredictable nature of these conditions.

Frequently, autoimmune diseases bring about inflammation, which may involve:

• A sensation of being warm or hot
• Changes in the skin’s color, such as redness
• Swelling
• Pain

It’s common for the symptoms of many autoimmune diseases to appear and then disappear. When symptoms are greater and more noticeable, physicians describe it as a flare or an attack.

In case you feel that your symptoms come back from time to time, let your provider know, especially if some actions, routines, or diet changes seem to improve or worsen your symptoms.

What are the Risk Factors of Autoimmune Diseases?

Experts have found that there are some factors (triggers) that could lead to an increased risk of autoimmune diseases. Below are some examples of probable triggers:

• Viral infections include COVID-19 and the Epstein-Barr virus.
• Your sex. Women are more likely to suffer from autoimmune diseases.
• Being related to someone who has an autoimmune disease. Some autoimmune conditions are inherited in a family and can be seen throughout generations.
• The likelihood of a person getting a second autoimmune disease is higher once they have one.
• Coming into contact with chemicals or some forms of pollution, as well as other aspects of the environment, might cause autoimmune diseases.
• Smoking and using various tobacco products may trigger autoimmune diseases and have other negative effects on health.

How are Autoimmune Diseases Treated?

Although no cures have been found yet, various treatments are available to help manage the body’s response to autoimmune disorders. They include:

1. Medication

Different medications are prescribed by doctors based on the kind and severity of autoimmune disorders. These include:

• Steroids:In most cases, corticosteroids are used as the first treatment because they act fast, despite the risk of suppressing the whole immune system.
• Targeted Drugs: There are drugs that don’t affect all immune system cells; instead, they target only certain cells and proteins, with milder side effects.
• Anti-inflammatory Drugs: These drugs aid the functions of organs and control how the immune system acts.

2. Other Treatments to Manage Symptoms:

• Painkillers
• Medication for anxiety, depression, and sleep
• Insulin shots
• Plasma exchange to eliminate dangerous antibodies
• Creams and pills for rashes
• IVIg (a blood product containing antibodies)
• Blood transfusions, if necessary

3. Lifestyle Changes

Medical professionals may also encourage patients to make changes to their lifestyles. Exercise or physical therapy can help with muscular illnesses such as myositis or MS. Quitting smoking reduces risk and progression.

Since the symptoms are often the same, it can be challenging to find out exactly which autoimmune disease a person has. Autoantibodies are often found in blood tests, which can help doctors identify the diseases. Anti-inflammatory drugs are given to soothe the overactive immune system and reduce inflammation.

Additionally, managing autoimmune diseases often requires long-term treatment. Thus, it is crucial to have a comprehensive health insurance policy, like the ones available at Star Health, to get timely access to quality medical care without any financial burden.

Call us today for further details!