Understanding Autoimmune Diseases
The autoimmune disease is a largely misunderstood phenomenon. The term implies the body attacking itself. Women have 6 times the level of this disease because of their ability to have children. The act of getting pregnant involves the man DNA residing in the woman for 9 months. That forces the women to suppress her immunity by 25%. If a women is pregnant over age 30 the bodies ability to remove these self proteins percieved as foreign are less likely to be destroyed by the woman’s t cells. If a woman breastfeeds, that may exacerbate the symptoms. The autoimmune diseases typically flare at 6 months after birth of the baby. The usual diseases include hypothyroidism. That is why it is important to draw blood of thyroid peroxidase. The ana is 60 years old and not highly correlated with rheumatoid disease. The higher the titer the more it may be predictive of an autoimmune disease.
The main symptom of an autoimmune disease is fatigue, especially fatigue that increases in the afternoon. The patient may also have joint pain without swelling, change in color on fingers in cold weather or hives that are uncontrollable. These are subtle signs of autoimmune disease. Hydroxychloroquin 200 mg for first two months then 400 mg is used for treatment of fatigue. More specific symptoms such as severe bloating with gluten and grains may point to celiac disease.
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