Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site asgb.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!genrad!panda!talcott!harvard!seismo!hao!asgb!margaret
From: margaret@asgb.UUCP (Margaret Ann Farnik)
Newsgroups: net.med
Subject: Re: Autoimmune diseases
Message-ID: <812@asgb.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 8-Nov-85 10:12:45 EST
Article-I.D.: asgb.812
Posted: Fri Nov  8 10:12:45 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 10-Nov-85 09:20:37 EST
References: <361@drutx.UUCP>
Organization: Burroughs Corp. ASG, Boulder Colo.
Lines: 72

> The questions are these:
>       1.  How many diseases have been identified as autoimmune?
>           What are they?

  Arthritis, and its related diseases (gout, Systemic Lupus Erythematosis
  (which I have)) are considered to be autoimmune diseases. 

>       2.  Do women show more autoimmune diseases in general, or
>           is this true only for my two examples above?

  Approximately 80+% of the people who suffer from Lupus are women. It generally
  strikes women between the ages of 20 and 40. I believe that arthritis is also
  more prevalent in women, but I don't have my Arthritis Foundation literature
  here at work. 

>       3.  Likewise, do some of the other risk factors for the
>           two above diseases apply to autoimmune diseases in
>           general?

  For Lupus, at least, one of the risk factors involved with triggering the 
  disease is the sun. Here in Colorado, there is a great deal of UV light, 
  which causes flares of the disease.  I don't know if there is any other
  risk factor (such as ancestry.)

>       4.  Do people with one autoimmune disease have more, less,
>           or the same chance of having another?

  I hope not! Fighting one of them is quite enough. Seriously, I don't know 
  about this one. Craig or Steve, could you help us out here?

>       5.  Does history of one autoimmune disease in a family
>           put a member of the family at risk for another autoimmune
>           disease?
> 

  Although there is no positive clinical proof, it is generally believed that 
  for Lupus, there is some familial connection. This is true for me- there is
  arthritis on both sides of my family, my grandfather passed away from colon
  cancer last March, and my dad has been through two bouts of chemotherapy
  for lymphoma (presently in remission.) There is also a strong family history
  of diabetes. (I guess I'm just a genetic reject :-)

> Does anyone know if these sorts of things have been studied?  I have
> found no reference to them--but our local library isn't real packed with
> medical references.  (As a woman, of northern European ancestry, living
> within a few miles of the 40th parallel, I'm curious for obvious reasons.)  
> -- 
> 
>                                      Sue Brezden
>                                      ihnp4!drutx!slb
> 
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
  I'm sure that there have been lots of studies on this. Since you're close to
  both CU and DU, perhaps you could check out their libraries. Caveat: when I
  first found out I had Lupus, I headed straight for the library at Colo State
  University, where I was going to school. Everything I found said that the 
  disease was terminal within three years. I had to worry for two weeks until 
  the hematologist I was to see could fit me in for an appointment. THEN, I
  found out that the information in the library was true 10 years ago, but not
  today. (After 4.2 years, I'm still here!) 

  As long as we're talking about autoimmune diseases, are there any other 
  Lupins out there on the net? Perhaps we could correspond, and share survival
  techniques. Do any of you net.doctors.to_be have any new information on
  Lupus? 

  I hope this answers some of your questions.

  Margaret Farnik
  Burroughs DSG, Boulder, Colorado 

  {hao, bmcg}!asgb!margaret