Current Trials

'I believe you' the words patients want to hear from doctors

'I believe you' the words patients want to hear from doctors

A ‘chasm of misunderstanding and miscommunication’ is often experienced between clinicians and patients, leading to autoimmune diseases such as lupus and vasculitis being wrongly diagnosed as psychiatric or psychosomatic conditions, with a profound and lasting impact on patients, researchers have found.

A study involving over 3,000 participants – both patients and clinicians – found that these misdiagnoses (often termed “in your head” by patients) were often associated with long term impacts on patients’ physical and wellbeing and damaged trust in healthcare services.

Why nightmares and ‘daymares’ could be early warning signs of autoimmune disease

Why nightmares and ‘daymares’ could be early warning signs of autoimmune disease

An increase in nightmares and hallucinations – or ‘daymares’ – could herald the onset of autoimmune diseases such as lupus, say an international team led by researchers at the University of Cambridge and King’s College London.

The researchers argue that there needs to be greater recognition that these types of mental health and neurological symptoms can act as an early warning sign that an individual is approaching a ‘flare’, where their disease worsens for a period.

Lupus clues from cellular 'power stations'

Lupus clues from cellular 'power stations'

Researchers at Imperial College London have revealed crucial insights into systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Previous studies from the same Imperial College researchers have suggested that immune cells called CD8 T cells, which normally help to destroy threats to the body such as viruses, appear to malfunction in SLE patients. This may play a role in the immune system spiralling out of control.

Ground-breaking discovery finds new link between autoimmune diseases and a gut bacterium

Ground-breaking discovery finds new link between autoimmune diseases and a gut bacterium

Could microbes in our guts be sending out the wrong message? Queen's University Belfast researchers have, for the first time, found a specific microbe in the gut that pumps out protein molecules that mimic a human protein, causing the human defence system to turn on its own cells by mistake.

New discovery could improve diagnosis and treatment of lupus in black Africans

New discovery could improve diagnosis and treatment of lupus in black Africans

Two variants of an autoimmune disease that affects thousands but is hard to diagnose are relatively common among black Africans, research shows.

The findings, relating to systemic lupus erythematosus, or SLE, could improve diagnosis and treatment of the condition.

They could enable better management of the disease in patients of African descent, particularly in southern Africa, where incidence and mortality rates are relatively high.

THE CONTENT ON THIS WEBSITE SHOULD NOT BE SEEN AS SUBSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL ADVICE. IF YOU HAVE, OR THINK YOU MAY HAVE, LUPUS, ALWAYS SEEK ADVICE FROM A QUALIFIED PHYSICIAN. FIND OUT MORE IN OUR TERMS OF USE.