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Autoimmunity - Hope for the Future

By T. Stephen Balch, M.D., F.A.C.P.

Autoimmunity affects at least 25 million people nationally. It is the physiologic process that exists prior to the development of many diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis, Sjogren’s syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, psoriasis, scleroderma, and vasculitis.

Autoimmunity as a precursor to autoimmune disease is similar to the red flag of high blood pressure preceding strokes and high cholesterol paving the way for heart disease.

By examining the 25 million patients with early arthritis, neurological symptoms that defy explanation, gastrointestinal symptoms, kidney disease, skin disorders, and blood vessel problems, we can arrive at new research and treatment protocols that will finally give hope to these patients. This is no longer a dream. This is now becoming a reality.

Because the awareness of autoimmunity is relatively new, and the uncertainty of where and by whom to have it treated can be a dilemma once it is diagnosed, the autoimmune problem has barely received the recognition and consideration it deserves. This, of course, is not surprising, given the lack of research and medication initiative available to treat the enormous number of patients with this disorder.

This gap, between the millions of autoimmune disease sufferers and the medical system ready to deal with their problems, brings an obvious opportunity to develop new initiatives in the diagnosis and treatment of this entity. As the treatments of high blood pressure and high cholesterol have evolved into very successful areas, so to will the treatment of autoimmunity and autoimmune disease evolve in the future.

The early symptoms of autoimmune disease can involve almost any organ, the neurological system, the lungs, the heart, the gastrointestinal tract, the kidneys, the blood vessels, the skin, etc. Because of the diversity of organs involved, it was not until recently that patients and physicians began to realize the tremendous number of diseases that start many years in advance of the more progressive disease process. Just as treating high blood pressure early may prevent strokes and treating high cholesterol may prevent heart disease, early diagnosis and treatment of autoimmune processes must be made in order to curtail successfully the progression of these autoimmune disorders into disease. This is essential!

By examining the 25 million patients with early arthritis, neurological symptoms that defy explanation, gastrointestinal symptoms, kidney disease, skin disorders, and blood vessel problems, we can arrive at new research and treatment protocols that will finally give hope to these patients. This is no longer a dream. This is now becoming a reality.

Within the next 10 years, we should have blood tests to help with early diagnosis; and there is promise of more effective treatment options. However, we have begun to understand that, even with current diagnostic and treatment difficulties, patients with autoimmune processes can be helped to live a longer life than was possible only a short time ago.

The future looks bright for autoimmune disease patients as we see increasingly improved, safer options for diagnosis and treatment in this disease category.

Dr. T. Stephen Balch, M.D., F.A.C.P. is recognized as one of the foremost authorities on autoimmune disease and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the AARDA, the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association. He can be contacted at 404-252-3771.