Auto Antibodies Predict Lupus

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> Autoantibodies Predict Lupus

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http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/extract/290/24/3186

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> Hampton, PhD

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> JAMA. 2003;290:3186.

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> Since this article does not have an abstract, we

> have provided the

> first 150 words of the full text and any section

> headings.

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> New research funded by the National Institute of

> Arthritis and

> Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases indicates that

> patients with

> systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) usually have

> autoantibodies in

> their blood years before any symptoms arise (N Engl

> J Med.

> 2003;349:1526-1533). The results suggest that the

> presence of

> autoantibodies, which attack the body's healthy

> tissues, may alert

> physicians of a patient's risk of developing lupus

> in the future.

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> The study's authors used blood specimens from a

> repository of

> specimens prospectively collected from US Armed

> Forces personnel,

> testing samples from 130 individuals collected

> before they were

> diagnosed as having SLE, as well as samples from

> matched controls.

> They found that

> 88% of those with lupus had autoantibodies in their

> blood for months

> to years before feeling any effects of the disease

> compared with 3.8%

> of controls.

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> SLE is often diagnosed only after considerable

> tissue damage. The

> authors propose that...

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