Do You Experience Muscle And Joint Pain? It Could Be An Autoimmune Disorder

Autoimmune disorders are illnesses where your immune system erroneously targets your own body. Such disorders consist of various types such as rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and certain thyroid ailments. The immune system’s primary function is to protect the body against bacteria and viruses. Once it detects these intruders, it dispatches an army of defensive cells to combat them. Ordinarily, the immune system can differentiate between foreign cells and those belonging to your body. In cases of autoimmune disease, however, the immune system perceives a part of your body, such as your skin or joints, as foreign, and produces autoantibodies, which attack healthy cells.

While some autoimmune conditions target a single organ, such as the pancreas in Type 1 diabetes, others, like systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or lupus, can affect the entire body.

Symptoms of Autoimmune disorders

Dr Vivek Pal Singh told News18 that disorders of the immune system are not specific to a single organ. Unlike conditions like cardiac disease, where symptoms are primarily related to the heart, or liver disease, where symptoms are related to the liver, autoimmune diseases can lead to issues in multiple parts of the body.

According to Dr Singh, some of the symptoms of an autoimmune disease are:

Muscle and joint pain or weakness, fever,

Hair loss,

White patches on the skin or inside the mouth,

Weight loss,

Abdominal pain, blood or mucus in the stool, diarrhoea,

Insomnia,

Dizziness,

Feeling tired,

Chest pain,

Tingling in the feet or hands and numbness,

Nausea,

Rash and itching,

Fast or irregular heartbeat,

Blurred vision,

Difficulty concentrating,

Dry mouth, eyes or skin etc.

Treatment

Autoimmune disorders cannot be cured by treatments, but you can manage the hyperactive immune response and lessen inflammation, at least mitigating pain and inflammation, according to Healthline. The medications used for treating such disorders include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil) and naproxen (Naprosyn) and immune-suppressing drugs. Additionally, treatments are available to alleviate symptoms such as fatigue, pain, skin rashes, and swelling. Eating a well-rounded diet and engaging in regular exercise may also improve an individual’s well-being.

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