MAKE-UP AT ITS BEST FROM WITHIN - HOW TO IDENTIFY AUTOIMMUNE SKIN DISORDERS

How to Identify Autoimmune Skin Disorders

Autoimmune skin disorders are often the most difficult to identify and treat because they are similar in nature and may present confusing symptoms. With an autoimmune disorder, the immune system attacks the body's own cells rather than working to defend the body against malign cells, causing the degeneration of organs and an inability to fight infection. Autoimmune skin disorders are related primarily to the skin, although they can involve symptoms that are not external.

Instructions

o    1

Examine the patient for blisters or pustules. In many autoimmune skin disorders, such as pemphigus, blisters will form on all surfaces of the skin, including mucus membranes. These blisters might be filled with pus or be reddish in color and they will not respond to topical creams or lotions.

o    2

Look for raised, reddish bumps that resemble hives but don't go away even after the patient is removed from all possible allergens. Autoimmune skin disorders often present with the same symptoms as allergies, but aren't treated the same way. These skin disorders tend to spread quickly. Hives are common in disorders such as dermatitis herpetiformis.

o    3

Watch the skin for eruptions of purple or violet lesions that are covered with a distinctive white-lace pattern across the top. These are common in an autoimmune disorder called lichen planus, and are generally very itchy, and may swell over time. These might be found on the stomach and back and other parts of the trunk, but are also commonly found in the mouth.

o    4

Ask the patient if she has been feeling a combination of fatigue, dizziness, nausea and disorientation, especially if accompanied by skin abnormalities. These are the non-dermatological symptoms of autoimmune skin disorders, and are frequently dismissed as symptoms of something else, such as the flu.

o    5

Examine any skin abnormality that lasts for longer than 7 days. Allergies and other irritants will usually disappear within this time-frame, but autoimmune skin disorders will not go away on their own. Also, skin abnormalities that do disappear after the patient takes steroid medications indicate autoimmune disorders.

Tips & Warnings

·         In some cases, autoimmune skin disorders can be passed from pregnant mothers to their infants.

·         Many of these conditions are connected to a more general autoimmune disorder.

·         Never assume that a skin abnormality will simply go away. It's always better to have a physician look at it.

Reference: How to Identify Autoimmune Skin Disorders | eHow.com

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