Lupus manifests differently for everyone. Because symptoms vary and often only flare up occasionally, the experience of this condition is inconsistent across people. That makes it difficult to diagnose.
That said, you’re in your body every minute of every day. That means you’re in a great position to be on the lookout for early warning signs of this autoimmune disease. If you’ve been dealing with an unexplained fever or chronic fatigue, for example, it could be lupus.
You don’t have to figure this out on your own, either. As experts in autoimmune illness, Dr. Jonathan Singer or Dr. Gina Dattoli can help you determine what’s causing your symptoms. And if it is an autoimmune condition like lupus, we work to treat the root cause of the issue.
If you notice any of the early signs of lupus, don’t hesitate to visit us at HealthFirst in Greenwood Village, Colorado, and Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Those possible symptoms of lupus include:
A persistent tiredness is one of the most common symptoms of lupus. Research indicates that between 67-90% of all people with lupus experience fatigue. If you’ve been feeling constantly tired, start evaluating yourself for other signs of an autoimmune condition.
Your body’s off-kilter immune response can cause inflammation. That, in turn, can cause fever. Usually, fever from lupus stays in the low-grade category, meaning it’s only slightly higher than normal.
Like fever, the inflammation lupus causes can result in another early-stage symptom: discomfort in your joints. You might notice that your joints feel stiff and tender when your symptoms are flaring up.
Lupus can cause skin rashes, especially one on your face shaped like a butterfly than spans across your nose and cheeks.
Thinning hair is a common symptom of lupus, and it can even lead to bald spots. Lupus can also cause sores on your scalp, making the matter worse.
This symptom develops because lupus can cause inflammation in the pleura, the thin layer of tissue that keeps your lungs from rubbing against your chest wall. This can make it painful to breathe deeply, laugh, cough, or sneeze.
Usually, if you have lupus, you experience seasons of mild symptoms or no symptoms at all, with intermittent flares when your symptoms are at their worst. So don’t ignore these early signs if they come and go.
Instead, come see our team. Dr. Dattoli and Dr. Singer work closely with you to figure out if your symptoms are resulting from lupus or another condition. Then, we make a plan to treat the root cause of the problem — rather than simply focusing on masking your symptoms.
If these early signs of lupus sound familiar, don’t hesitate to contact the HealthFirst office nearest you to schedule an appointment with our team.
