Types, signs and management of autoimmune diseases

The main function of the immune system is guarding our bodies against microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses or any possible invading foreign body.

Autoimmune disease is a medical condition in which the body's immune system can't differentiate between foreign body and its own cells, so it begins to attack its own tissue and organs leading to serious health issues.

The initial symptoms of autoimmune diseases are somewhat similar, they usually include:

1. Fever.
2. Tissue redness and swelling.
3. Weakness and fatigue.
4. Muscle ache.
5. Hair loss.
6. Skin rash.

In addition to the symptoms mentioned above, every autoimmune disease has its own clinical manifestations. The most common autoimmune diseases include the following:

• Rheumatoid arthritis: the immune system attacks the joints, causing joint pain as well as redness, stiffness and swelling of the affected joints.
• Systemic lupus: it's an autoimmune disease that leads to functional deterioration of multiple organs such as joints, kidney, heart, lung and brain.
• Multiple sclerosis: the immune system destroys the myelin sheath that surrounds neurons, leading to disturbance in transmission of nerve impulses. So multiple sclerosis is manifested mainly with numbness, weakness, muscle paralysis as well as gradual deterioration of motor and sensory brain functions.
• Type 1 diabetes mellitus: the immune system attacks and destroys the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas, which leads to increased level of glucose and results in damage of many vital organs such as kidney, eyes, nerves and cardiovascular system.
• Inflammatory bowel disease: it's a medical term that describes conditions in which the immune system attacks the lining layer of the intestine; it includes crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.
• Addison's disease: the immune system attacks the adrenal glands (responsible for secretion of cortisol, aldosterone and androgen hormones), leading to decreased levels of these hormones which is manifested with fatigue, weight loss and hypoglycemia.
• Graves' disease: the immune system attacks the thyroid gland, leading to hyperthyroidism, which is manifested with tachycardia, heat intolerance, irritability and weight loss.

If your doctor suspects you have autoimmune disease, he will initially recommend doing antinuclear antibody test (ANA). Positive result means that you have an autoimmune disease; to know exactly which one you have, you need more specific lab tests which vary from each disease to another.

Autoimmune diseases are chronic medical conditions, so management plan depends mainly on controlling the immune response and reducing the associated inflammatory reactions. This is done by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and immunosuppressive drugs.