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MEDICAL PROBLEMS: BRIEF
REVIEWS—SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS
Michael J
Katz
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Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE or lupus) is a disease of autoimmune inflammation. In SLE, inappropriate antibodies are produced and attack the body’s own tissues. The immune reactions of SLE are initiated by autoantibodies to molecules in the cell nucleus and on cell membranes. Resultant inflammatory damage occurs throughout the body, especially in blood vessels. In the US, SLE affects approximately 1.5 million people, and almost 30,000 new cases are diagnosed each year. Ninety percent of newly diagnosed SLE patients are women of child-bearing age. In the US, black women are much more likely to get SLE than are white women…
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