Autoimmune and Inflammatory Diseases
Information about autoimmune and inflammatory diseases
35 conditions
Pemphigus Erythematosus
Pemphigus erythematosus represents one of the rarest forms of autoimmune blistering diseases, affecting fewer than 1 in 1 million people worldwide. This condition combines features of two different autoimmune disorders - pemphigus foliaceus and lupus erythematosus - creating a unique clinical picture that can puzzle even experienced dermatologists. Also known as Senear-Usher syndrome, it primarily targets the skin on sun-exposed areas, particularly the face and upper chest.
Cicatricial Pemphigoid
Cicatricial pemphigoid is a rare autoimmune blistering disease that primarily attacks the mucous membranes lining the mouth, eyes, nose, throat, and genital areas. Unlike other blistering conditions that heal without lasting damage, this disease has a particularly troubling characteristic: it leaves behind scars as it progresses.
Morphea (Localized Scleroderma)
Morphea represents a fascinating puzzle in autoimmune medicine - a condition where the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy skin tissue, causing patches of thick, hardened skin to develop. Unlike its more serious cousin, systemic scleroderma, morphea stays confined to the skin and underlying tissues, sparing internal organs from damage.
Autoimmune Hepatitis
When your body's immune system mistakenly attacks your liver, the result is autoimmune hepatitis - a chronic inflammatory condition that affects roughly 200,000 Americans. Unlike hepatitis caused by viruses or toxins, this form develops when the immune system becomes confused and treats healthy liver cells as foreign invaders.
Primary Biliary Cholangitis
Primary biliary cholangitis ranks among the most misunderstood autoimmune diseases affecting the liver. Despite its name, this condition has nothing to do with gallstones or blocked bile ducts from external causes. Instead, the body's own immune system mistakenly attacks the tiny bile ducts inside the liver, causing inflammation and scarring that can progress over many years.
Takayasu Arteritis
Takayasu arteritis is a rare inflammatory disease that attacks the body's largest blood vessels, particularly the aorta and its main branches. Named after the Japanese doctor who first described it in 1908, this condition causes the walls of these vital arteries to become inflamed, thickened, and sometimes blocked. The disease primarily strikes young women, typically between ages 15 and 40, earning it the nickname "pulseless disease" because weakened pulses are often an early sign.
Polyarteritis Nodosa
Polyarteritis nodosa represents one of medicine's more puzzling conditions - a rare disease where the body's immune system mistakenly attacks its own blood vessels. This systemic vasculitis primarily targets medium-sized arteries throughout the body, causing inflammation that can disrupt blood flow to vital organs including the kidneys, heart, liver, and nervous system.
Chronic Inflammatory Myopathy
Chronic inflammatory myopathy represents a group of rare autoimmune diseases that cause muscle weakness and inflammation throughout the body. These conditions occur when the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy muscle tissue, leading to progressive weakness that can significantly impact daily activities. The four main types include dermatomyositis, polymyositis, necrotizing autoimmune myopathy, and inclusion body myositis, each with distinct characteristics and treatment approaches.
Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus
Roughly 70% of people with lupus develop some form of skin involvement, making cutaneous lupus erythematosus one of the most visible manifestations of this autoimmune condition. Unlike systemic lupus that affects multiple organs, cutaneous lupus primarily targets the skin, creating distinctive rashes and lesions that can significantly impact a person's daily life and self-confidence.
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Carditis
Systemic lupus erythematosus carditis represents one of the most serious complications of lupus, affecting between 30 and 60 percent of people living with this autoimmune condition. When lupus attacks the heart, it can inflame any of the three layers that make up this vital organ - the outer protective sac, the heart muscle itself, or the delicate inner lining and valves.
Antiphospholipid Syndrome
Antiphospholipid syndrome represents one of medicine's more puzzling autoimmune conditions, where the body's immune system mistakenly attacks its own blood-clotting mechanisms. This creates a dangerous paradox: the blood becomes more likely to form clots in places where clots shouldn't form, while simultaneously becoming less able to clot properly when healing is needed.
Vascular Inflammation
Your blood vessels form an intricate highway system that carries life-sustaining nutrients and oxygen throughout your body. When inflammation strikes these vital pathways, it creates a condition doctors call vasculitis or vascular inflammation. This umbrella term describes a group of diseases where your immune system mistakenly attacks your own blood vessels, causing them to become swollen, narrowed, or weakened.
Acute Arteritis
Acute arteritis represents a group of inflammatory conditions that cause blood vessel walls to become swollen and inflamed. When this inflammation strikes suddenly, it can disrupt normal blood flow to vital organs and tissues throughout the body. The condition affects arteries of various sizes, from large vessels near the heart to smaller ones that supply muscles and organs.
Rheumatic Fever
Rheumatic fever remains one of the most preventable causes of heart disease in children worldwide. This inflammatory condition develops when the body's immune system mistakenly attacks its own tissues after fighting off a strep throat infection that wasn't properly treated.
Polymyositis
Polymyositis stands as one of the more puzzling autoimmune conditions, targeting the body's own muscle tissue with inflammatory attacks that can leave people struggling with everyday tasks. This rare inflammatory muscle disease causes the immune system to mistakenly attack healthy muscle fibers, leading to weakness, pain, and fatigue that can develop gradually over weeks or months.
Dermatomyositis
Dermatomyositis stands out among autoimmune diseases because it attacks two very different parts of your body at once - your muscles and your skin. This rare inflammatory condition causes the immune system to mistakenly turn against healthy tissue, creating a distinctive combination of muscle weakness and skin changes that doctors can often recognize at first glance. The purple-red rash that appears around the eyes, knuckles, and other areas becomes the calling card of this complex disorder.
Reactive Arthritis (Post-Infectious)
Reactive arthritis strikes when the body's immune system overreacts to an infection somewhere else in the body. This condition develops weeks after the original infection has cleared, causing painful inflammation in joints, eyes, and other tissues. The arthritis itself isn't caused by bacteria directly invading the joints - instead, it's the immune system's misguided response that creates the problem.
Cutaneous Lupus
Cutaneous lupus represents a group of autoimmune skin conditions where the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy skin tissue. Unlike systemic lupus that affects multiple organs, cutaneous lupus primarily targets the skin, creating distinctive rashes and lesions that can range from mild to severe. The condition affects roughly 70 people per 100,000 in the United States, with women being three times more likely to develop it than men.
Alopecia Areata
Alopecia areata stands out as one of the most unpredictable hair loss conditions doctors encounter. Unlike gradual pattern baldness, this autoimmune disorder causes hair to fall out suddenly in round or oval patches, often appearing seemingly overnight. The condition occurs when the body's immune system mistakenly attacks hair follicles, treating them as foreign invaders.
Sarcoidosis (Pulmonary)
Pulmonary sarcoidosis represents one of medicine's more puzzling conditions. This inflammatory disease causes tiny clusters of immune cells, called granulomas, to form throughout the lungs and lymph nodes in the chest. While doctors can't pinpoint exactly what triggers this immune response, they know it affects people from all walks of life, with some striking patterns in who develops the condition.
Sign up for our weekly newsletter
Get the latest health information, research breakthroughs, and patient stories delivered directly to your inbox.