What Is Lupus Diagnosis
Lupus affects everyone differently.
What is lupus diagnosis. Diagnosis while no single test can determine whether a person has lupus several laboratory tests may help the doctor confirm a diagnosis or at least rule out other ailments. If enough of the pieces fit together you may be diagnosed with lupus. Butterfly shaped rash on the face that covers the cheeks and bridge of the nose or rashes elsewhere on the body. Inflammation can occur on the inside of your body your kidneys or heart for example on the outside your skin or both.
Making a lupus diagnosis is kind of like putting together a puzzle. Learn what to watch for. The combination of blood and urine tests signs and symptoms and physical examination findings leads to the diagnosis. Your doctor may say you have lupus if you have at least four of 11 signs of the disease that are laid out by experts at the american college of rheumatology butterfly shaped rash raised red pat.
Joint pain stiffness and swelling. What questions will my doctor ask. An autoimmune disease is a condition in which the body s immune system attacks healthy organs or tissues. No one test can diagnose lupus.
The most common signs and symptoms include. Learn what doctors look for and the tests they use to diagnose lupus. Lupus is an autoimmune disease that affects about 5 million people around the world. Your symptoms medical history family history and lab tests.
This content is provided by the office on women s health. Division of population health national center for chronic disease prevention and health promotion centers for disease control and prevention. Lupus is an autoimmune disease that causes swelling inflammation and a wide variety of symptoms. Signs and symptoms of lupus may vary over time and overlap with those of many other disorders.
Your doctor will look at several different puzzle pieces. Diagnosing lupus is difficult because signs and symptoms vary considerably from person to person. Skin lesions that appear or worsen with sun exposure photosensitivity fingers and toes. A doctor who is considering the possibility of lupus will look for signs of inflammation which include pain heat redness swelling and loss of function at a particular place in the body.