The immune system serves as the body’s defense system against bacteria, viruses, parasites, and other foreign bodies. When it detects these foreign bodies, it sends out an army of antibodies that fights them, thus protecting the body from different illnesses and infections. In some cases, the immune system mistakenly detects your own body cells, tissues, or organs as foreign bodies and attacks them. Called autoimmune diseases, these attacks weaken bodily function and can be life-threatening.
Collectively, autoimmune diseases affect 14.7 to 23.5 million of the American population, where 80% of those are women. For reasons that are poorly understood, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services continuously observes a rising prevalence of these diseases. They are also known as the leading cause of death among young- and middle-aged women.
There are more than 80 known autoimmune diseases. Some are well known, while others are rare and are difficult to diagnose.
Causes of autoimmune disorders
Although the causes of many autoimmune disorders remain unknown, studies indicate that genetic and environmental factors interplay and determine the likelihood of developing an autoimmune disease. This means that no single autoimmune gene is responsible for autoimmune diseases, but they are rather multifactorial diseases.
Over the decades, research findings have identified less than 15% of gene coding regions related to autoimmune diseases. For example, the HLA (human leukocyte antigen) is associated with all autoimmune diseases, while other loci like IL23R, TNFAIP3, and IL23A are associated with several autoimmune diseases. However, despite these commonalities, their heritability remains exceedingly variable and accounts for only a fraction of the overall disease factors.
While autoimmune diseases tend to occur within family members, it is often not Mendelian. Various types of autoimmune diseases may run in families. For example, if one of the family members has lupus or multiple sclerosis, the other members have a higher probability of developing these diseases or another autoimmune condition.
Environmental factors such as infection, stress, diet, medication, and ultraviolet radiation are also found to trigger symptoms of autoimmune diseases. For example, studies have hypothesized that a deficiency in vitamin D causes multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis while oxidative stress agents like smoking, UV light exposure, and infections cause lupus.
Diagnosis of autoimmune disorders
Most people seek help only after a long time of experiencing signs and symptoms of autoimmune diseases. Diagnosis of the condition often takes a long time because most of its symptoms, such as fatigue and muscle aches, resemble many other illnesses.
Usually, there is no specific test to determine if a person has a specific autoimmune disease. Depending on the symptoms, diagnosis methods may include physical examination, medical history, review and tracking of symptoms, biopsy, and x-ray. Doctors often use the antinuclear antibody test (ANA) when symptoms point to an autoimmune disease. This test detects only if a person has an autoimmune disorder but not the exact autoimmune disorder he may have. To determine specific autoantibodies, other tests will be required.
Treatment of autoimmune disorders
Cures are not yet available for most autoimmune diseases. Still, some treatments can suppress the overactive immune response of the body and reduce inflammation and pain in the attacked cells, tissues, or organs of the body.
Here’s a list of some of the drugs used to treat autoimmune diseases:
Other treatment options include surgery, physical therapy, and deficiency treatment. In most cases, people with autoimmune diseases benefit from lifestyle changes such as the following:
For some recent information on autoimmunity, check out Autoimmunity in 2019.