Lupus can affect anyone. And although this is true, we do not want to ignore the fact that lupus disproportionately affects certain people. We have discussed how it affects young women, but we haven’t discussed how it affects young Black women. Lupus affects 1 in every 250 Black women and when compared to the white community, the prevalence of lupus in the Black community is 3-4x higher. It is well established that Black lupus patients tend to be sicker, need more aggressive medications and have worse outcomes. And despite the amazing advancements in testing and treatment, Black patients don’t benefit from those advances to the same extent as their white counterparts.
[Read more…] about Race & Lupus: Understand the ConnectionArchives for May 2021
Do you have common lupus symptoms?
This is going to sound strange and I hesitate to even say it…but after 10+ years of diagnosing and caring for lupus patients, I feel like I can “smell” lupus. It’s weird, I know. But when I’m approaching a consult, whether in the clinic or in the hospital, my lupus-spidey-sense gets activated if the patient has lupus. When I teach young doctors-in-training and listen to their long list of possible diagnoses, I get excited but also impatient, waiting for them to reach the same conclusion I’ve already reached.
[Read more…] about Do you have common lupus symptoms?What you need to know about Lupus – Pt 2
Lupus is not a diagnosis that anyone wants to hear come from their doctor’s mouth. It’s not very well understood by most and although it can be comforting to know the reason for your symptoms, it can be downright terrifying to think about your future. Lupus is a condition of ups and downs, sometimes extreme downs, but it is possible to live a happy, full life while also living with lupus.
[Read more…] about What you need to know about Lupus – Pt 2What you need to know about Lupus – Pt. 1
Residency training is an intense time for young doctors. The sheer amount of technical, pharmaceutical and physiology information you are expected to learn is overwhelming. It is not just numbers and equations that weigh heavy, but the interpersonal aspects of the training. The so-called “art of medicine.” Integral to this training is the “giving of bad news.” Some conditions are worse than others, but regardless of what you are about to disclose, telling someone they have a condition that will alter the course of their life, like lupus, is never easy.
[Read more…] about What you need to know about Lupus – Pt. 1