Well, first I just want to say that I am so sorry that you are suffering with so many different ailments. Lupus usually have more than one disease to deal with too. I saw in your profile that you are 64 this is well over the age that MOST people get a lupus diagnosis. ANA's tend to test positive after a certain age so for a rheumatologist to give a lupus diagnosis to someone at age 64 is extremely uncommon. Also certain medications that treat other illnesses to cause drug induced lupus. It is a scary diagnosis and I am sure it is one that you do not want to add. Have you seen a rheumy yet or was it a general prac that told you this. A rheumy is really the only doctor that can give a true lupus diagnosis. You may have fibromayliga it can cause a lot of similar symptoms as lupus but it is not a devastating disease. I hope you do not have lupus it has been very debilitating disease for me. I also have graves disease, raynaurd's, MTFHR gene, herniated discs, asthma, anemia, etc. We lupies tend to collect diseases. What are your symptoms, and why does the doctor think you may have lupus? There are so many diseases that mimic lupus, lupus is called the great imitator. You can get lots of info about lupus by going to the mayo clinic lupus website or the LFA website. These sites can answer a ton of questions you may have. I was upset with my diagnosis but was so ill and lost my ability to walk for 5 months so I was not shocked. Please feel free to ask questions. Best wishes and gentle hugs.

Hello,I am so sorry that you are dealing with these ailments. Having being diagnosed with just one can be very frustrating. I wish you blessings and I am glad that you have found this site because this is one of the better sites for support. Have a great day!

I've had type 1 diabetes since I was 17 & developed Celiacs Disease abt 6 yrs ago & lupus took hold abt 4 yrs ago now. When I think back I think I was stunned. I guess maybe cause I've got strong faith & felt OK this is where the Lord wants me to be then so be it. Don't get me wrong, I did have some degree of panic, wonder, confusion & everything else that can go with it. They had a major difficult time getting my immune system to back down so I had 6 months of out patient chemo. Right off the bat though I read & researched & educated myself. I know now that that is what was the best thing I could do.
You've come to a really wonderful place to get info, feedback, ideas, shoulders to cry on.

Hi corier. I am still adjusting to the idea and I was told a year and a 1/2 ago. I also have multiple problems. I've had many problems for years, but most of the stuff came out and started getting diagnosed one and 1/2 years ago after I had a few very close family deaths in my family and my health went in the toilet.

I also was older than the "typical" diadnosed age, but I'm sure I had the disease much longer and was living with the symptoms. I was 53 whe DX'd.

I started on the medication called Plaquenil, which It seems is what most of us start on and is probably what your doctor may start you on.

Hope you feel better soon.

I don't know if this is the case for you, but often, lupus patients PRIOR to their lupus diagnosis are given multiple diagnoses for things that are really part of lupus. The flip side is that people with OTHER diagnoses are given a lupus diagnosis mistakenly.

In your case, the symptoms of hypothyroidism, COPD and sleep apnea can MIMIC lupus. My first recommendation is to get a SECOND OPINION with a good rheumatologist especially if you were diagnosed by an internist or GP. I realize that this is my own personal issue having been mistakenly diagnosed. I have to disagree with Mar, though, on this diagnosis at your age being uncommon. Lupus diagnosis is NOT uncommon after menopause. The statistics just change from 9 to 1 women to men, to 50/50. Certainly female hormones contribute to lupus and there is a higher rate of diagnoses in women from menarche until menopause, but lupus does occur in post menopausal women. That being said, I still recommend a second opinion because of your other diseases which complicate your picture.

I'd like to point out that these days, medications are getting more and more disease specific. Twenty years ago, they gave everyone methotrexate and Plaquenil and steroids. Not RA, lupus, etc., are treated DIFFERENTLY so it is very important that you have the correct diagnosis. In your case, some of the lupus drugs could exacerbate your other conditions. Steroids particularly cause weight gain which would definitely affect your diabetes, COPD and sleep apnea by causing weight gain. You don't want to cause yourself more problems with your other diseases in an effort to treat the lupus.

In other words, SECOND OPINION is a good idea.

Tracy

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Mayo Clinic Health Manager

By Mayo Clinic staff

While doctors don't know what causes lupus in many cases, they have identified factors that may increase your risk of the disease, including:

* Sex. Lupus is more common in women.
* Age. Although lupus affects people of all ages, including infants, children and older adults, it's most often diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 40.
* Race. Lupus is more common in blacks, Hispanics and Asians.
* Sunlight. Exposure to the sun may bring on lupus skin lesions or trigger an internal response in susceptible people. Exactly why ultraviolet radiation has this effect isn't well understood, but scientists suspect that sunlight may cause skin cells to express certain proteins on their surface. Antibodies that are normally present in the body then latch onto these proteins, initiating an inflammatory response. Damaged skin cells also seem to die more frequently in people with lupus, leading to even more inflammation.
* Certain prescription medications. Drug-induced lupus results from the long-term use of certain prescription drugs. Although many medications can potentially trigger lupus, examples of drugs most clearly linked with the disease include the antipsychotic chlorpromazine; high blood pressure medications, such as hydralazine (Apresoline); the tuberculosis drug isoniazid and the heart medication procainamide (Pronestyl, Procanbid), among others. It usually takes several months or years of therapy with these drugs before symptoms appear, and even then, only a small percentage of people will ever develop lupus.

For Older Adults

Late Onset Lupus Fact Sheet

* Lupus can occur at any age, in either sex, in any race.

* 15% of people with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) develop it later in life after age 55.

* Late onset lupus affects women 8 times more often than men. Compared with younger SLE patients, late onset lupus affects a higher percentage of men.

* Late onset lupus is found primarily in Caucasians, but occurs in all races.

* Symptoms in most cases are relatively mild and commonly include: arthritis, pleurisy (chest pain with deep breathing), pericarditis (inflammation of the sac around the heart), muscle aches, dry eyes and dry mouth (Overlap syndrome).

* Uncommon symptoms include: fever, swollen lymph glands, seizure, psychoses, and Raynaud's Phenomenon (fingers turn blue or white in the cold).

* Because symptoms of lupus in older people mimic other diseases, eg., rheumatoid arthritis, Sjogren's syndrome, polymyalgia rheumatica, distinguishing among them is difficult and may result in a delayed or missed diagnosis.

* Severe kidney involvement is less common in late onset lupus.

* The average age of onset is 59 years; average age at diagnosis is 62 years.

* As a rule, older people with lupus do better and their lupus can be managed with conservative therapy. When corticosteroids are required, symptoms are controlled with lower doses (i.e., less than 25 mg/day for one month).

* Drug-induced lupus occurs more often in older people because they are more likely to have conditions (high blood pressure, heart disease) that require treatment that may cause the symptoms of lupus. Symptoms generally fade when the medication is discontinued.

Related Information

On this website:
Basics for Better Living
Signs and Symptoms of a Lupus Flare
Depression
Drug-Induced Lupus
Medications









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Thank you for all the replies. I found the one about late onset quite interesting. I will be getting a 2nd opinion as soon as I get back to FL.
This wasn't the first time a DR. mentioned Lupus . The GP did about 3-4 years ago but didn't seem concerned so never ran test. I'm hoping for the drug induced type. I take so many meds it's a wonder my liver still works. You have all eased my mind quite a bit. I guess it's like the other crap I have.. Just roll with the punches!

I see that you have been well informed. I'm 50 and was dx with lupus 2 years ago. I have COPD, PH, IDL, maybe APS and ostroarthritis, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, morbidly obese. And there is always something new when i go to the doctor.

I'm writing a blog telling my story feel free to read it.

http://meverselupus.blogspot.com

All the best to you, hang in there.
hugs,
Kim