What is Lupus and Other Frequently Asked Questions

Submitted by PatientsEngage on 16 August 2021
Picture of Dr. Nolkha and overly with the topic Understanding Basics of Lupus/ SLE and his credentials

In this webinar we spoke with Dr. Nilesh Nolkha, Consultant Rheumatologist and Clinical Immunologist addressed some of the most common questions on Lupus as part of the “Know Lupus” series. 

Dr. Nilesh Nolkha answers the following questions (marked with timestamps on the youtube recording)

03:52 What is Lupus?

05:30 What are the signs and symptoms of Lupus

10:00 How is Lupus diagnosed? Are there any tests for this?

12:00 What are the treatment options for Lupus?

16:05 Can a Lupus patient stop their medications when they are feeling better?

21:40 Are recurrent fevers and mouth ulcers common in Lupus

24:40 Can hair loss reduce over time and can hair be recovered

31:20 Is it safe for Lupus patients to take Covid vaccine

38:10 Do diet and lifestyle changes help lupus patients?

46:20 What is the role of complementary and alternative treatments like homeopathy and ayurveda?

Read more Lupus here. 

 

Community
Auto Immune conditions
Condition
Lupus
Changed
Mon, 08/16/2021 - 20:17

Stories

  • Stay Positive and Believe in Yourself
    Usha Ravi Eppaturi, 49 has been living with Lupus for a long time and it took a while for her diagnosis. She talks about Lupus as well as other challenges with which she lives but remains undaunted. Please tell us a bit about your condition Identified with auto immune condition Lupus, with a relapse of AVN (Avascular Necrosis) which has left me with 3 artificial implants i.e. both my hip joints and right shoulder joint. When were you diagnosed? Diagnosed in September 1986 when I was 16 years…
  • Profile pic of a Lupus Patient
    Stay Focussed And Live Every Moment - Beyond Lupus
    K.S. Sangeetha, 29 from Chennai has been living with Lupus last 14 years. She even had to go through with a kidney transplant last year. Sangeetha talks about how she handled both conditions. Please tell us a bit about your condition I have a condition called lupus which is an auto immune disorder. I was diagnosed in 2005. What were the early symptoms? Early symptoms of Lupus were extreme hair fall, fatigue, persistent fever, swollen joints and severe joint aches. We also have no history of…
  • Find The Lupus Management Protocol That Is Right For You
    Ishita Biswas has Lupus (SLE) and Macrophage Activation Syndrome (MAS) and shares with us how she deals with the challenges of each day to the best of her abilities. #DayInTheLife Series Mornings : My mornings begin with meditation. I try to wake up as early as possible, but I try to make sure that my body is not stressed by that. I am up mostly by 6:30 am. I feel starting your day with meditation is the best way to have a productive day, irrespective of the fact whether you have a chronic…
  • A woman in black and pink on a wheelchair in an outdoor setting
    I Felt Most Challenged When Lupus Affected My Spine
    Priya Bhargava was affected by Lupus as a teenager and had multiple disabilities. Yet she fought bravely and pushed forward to pursue all her dreams. Read how she empowered and transformed her life. She has boldly sidestepped Lupus, a chronic autoimmune condition that can cause inflammation throughout the body. Despite early onset of symptoms and multiple disabilities, she continued to dream big and break barriers. Her disease has never been her identity. She is multi-talented and known for her…
  • A young woman in a red dress standing next to a palm frond
    "Lupus Does Not Define Me"
    At 20, Ishita Biswas, a Lupus patient, has been through a lot of pain and medication. She has also had to battle the ignorance of people around her. But she has learnt to come to terms with her condition and even wants to reach out to others in similar situations. I am a 20 year old woman suffering from a condition called Lupus or SLE (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus) which is a systemic autoimmune disease that occurs when your body's immune system attacks your own tissues and organs. Since there…
  • A stock pic of a face with the butterfly shaped rash typical of Lupus
    Helping Patients Accept A Diagnosis Of Lupus - A Doctor's Perspective
    Dr. Chethana Dharmapalaiah, Rheumatologist at Aster CMI, Bengaluru shares her experiences on sharing a Lupus diagnosis with her patients, the stories of hope amidst all the despair.  I have been practising as a rheumatologist since more than a decade. I was barely exposed to a handful of patients with rheumatoid arthritis and an even lesser number of patients with lupus during my undergraduate training. No doubt the awareness has increased now amongst doctors across specialties and the…
  • A smiling black haired young woman with Lupus in a mauve coloured hospital gown
    "Do Not Let Lupus Limit You!"
    Shambhavi Chaudhary is a strong, young woman who refuses to be bogged down by Lupus, a rather inexplicable autoimmune condition. She shares her approach to facing the challenges head on despite the fear and uncertainty associated with Lupus.  As World Lupus Day approaches there are many organizations around the world effectively working towards lupus awareness, and I am often asked - Why do we need to talk about lupus? Why lupus awareness? I bet of all the weird and life threatening…
  • Creating A Patient Led Holistic Support System For Lupus in India
    The patient-led Lupus Trust India is creating a holistic support network for Lupus patients in India. As they prepare for awareness campaigns for World Lupus Day,  watch this space for the resources they are putting together.  Contributed by Suzanne Sangi Ask any Lupus patient in India how they felt right after their diagnosis, and you’re sure to hear them say “It’s the first time I heard about Lupus” or “It felt like I was the only one”. Why? Because in India, nobody talks about this…
  • A young woman, spectacled, shoulder length hair in a red dress in the foreground and holding a glass of wine. In the background are a few tables and blurred images of 2 people in blue shirt and green tshirt pulling chairs
    My Relationship with an Invisible Illness
    Suzanne Sangi is a 22-year-old who was recently diagnosed with Lupus, a chronic illness, which damages many parts of the body, including the joints, kidneys and heart. Here she talks about the pain that you can’t always see, and healing that you can always be a part of. For a long time, I have followed stories of women who have shared their experiences with chronic pain. I didn’t know that acknowledging pain would only be the starting point to what I would like to call the sparkling cloak of…
  • Image of Gopa a black haired woman looking at the camera, living with Lupus in Mumbai, India
    If You Stop Focussing On The Pain, It Gets Easier
    Gopa, 49 from Mumbai was diagnosed with Lupus Nephritis soon after her breast cancer treatment ended. She shares the complications that Lupus brought and the lifestyle changes that have helped her. Please tell us a bit about your condition  I have Lupus Nephritis (stage 5) and a blockage in the heart which is being treated with medicines. When were you diagnosed? What were the early symptoms? Well in 2000, I was diagnosed with Stage III Breast Cancer and had treatment going on till 2002.…