Rheumatoid Arthritis Or Lupus: How To Tell The Difference
Since they are both autoimmune disorders in which the body turns inwardly and causes damage, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis are often confused with each other. So, how do you differentiate between these two debilitating diseases?
Experts agree that it’s very difficult to diagnose these disorders because the clinical symptoms and laboratory abnormalities tend to Lupus and rheumatoid arthritis afflict women much more frequently than men. They are also both multisystem diseases, meaning, they can affect many organs. Like lupus, rheumatoid arthritis targets and causes damage to the blood vessels. Both diseases cause abnormality to the immune system, resulting in damaged tissues.
Lupus or systemic lupus erythematosus, is a complex disease whose cause is still undetermined. It can affect many parts of the body including joints, skin, and internal organs. Usually, the person develops a rash in the shape of a butterfly on the cheeks and across the bridge of the nose. Other symptoms include fatigue, hair loss, inflammation of the kidney, mouth sores, sensitivity to light, fever, and weight loss.
Like lupus, the cause of rheumatoid arthritis is unknown. It usually affects the wrists, fingers, knees, feet, and ankles. The disease usually starts to manifest itself with fatigue and weakness, morning stiffness that lasts for more than an hour, widespread muscle aches, and loss of appetite.
In lupus, it is common for the patient to experience joint pain, but this pain is not associated with actual damage to the join itself. In some cases, swelling is not present in people with lupus. In rheumatoid arthritis, however, there is always swelling of the lining of the joints. This swollen lining is called the synovium. Pain is commonly felt by patients, but it is less prominent compared to that of lupus.
Lupus and rheumatoid arthritis may be experienced by one person at the same time. When someone with lupus develops symptoms of rheumatoid-like arthritis, including deformities of the joint, he or she should be given medicines for people with rheumatoid arthritis. Standard RA treatments like methotrexate,sulfalazine, and, in some cases, more powerful to control joint inflammation.
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