Hi, name is sandra. I am 42 yrs old. My mother passed away jan 4,2007 she had diabetes, and was on kidney dialasis. She had blockages in her legs so when she stepped on something at thanksgiving, it became infected and on christmas eve they took her left leg below the knee off and died 8 days later.I had been a diabetic for a year at this time. type 2. They told me at christmas time that I have huge amounts of protein in my urine that I will need to see a rheumtologist. which I will be finally seeing her june 4th. took 6 months to see this doctor. I do not know what to expect but they have worded that I may be getting tested for lupus. which I dont know much about it. is there other diseases a person could have if they have huge amounts of protein. they said my number is 8534 when normal should be around 125. I am a mother 4 kids. be married 22 years june 1. I feel like I am being told I won't live long. but you know doctors they keep you holding on to get the answers. I need to know now. will I be on meds much meds if I have lupus. is it a fatal disease what in the world is it. your words please I looked on website and it flys over my head and no I am not a blonde lol. they say my kidney funtion is great and then kidney doctor says if i dont lose weight 5 to 10 yrs I will be on dialasis.. very scary.
Hi, csaved. I'm very sorry to read about your mother & about your own health problems. I'll try to say a few things about lupus in plain language, then, hopefully, others here will add more soon.
Lupus is an immune system disorder in which the immune system is overactive but aberrant: it mistakenly produces antibodies that damage your own body. It ranges from mild to severe. It affects, depending on the patient, anything from a narrow to wide range: skin, joints, blood, kidneys, central nervous system, heart, lungs, joints, ETC.---or just "constitutional" problems (fatigue, etc.)
There are three useful "sticky posts" at the top of the thread list. One includes the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria. A person must meet at least 4 of the 11, but not necessarily all at once, to be diagnosed with *systemic* lupus. Also listed are common symptoms.
(An aside: The two autoantibodies on the criteria list, anti-ds-DNA & anti-Sm, are NOT the only ones seen in lupus. There are actually as many as 16 or more. The two listed, however, are considered so specific for lupus that they made the list.
(Another aside: The criteria in the "sticky" apply to SYSTEMIC lupus. There are also other, typically lesser, "subsets" in which a patient meets fewer than 4 of the criteria.)
Another "sticky" describes antiphospholipid syndrome, a clotting disorder that is common in lupus patients but may also exist standalone.
One "sticky" includes what its world-famous author calls "alternative criteria": problems commonly seen in lupus that aren't included in the formal criteria.
Finally, somewhere in the "test results" sticky you'll see tests usually performed if lupus is a possibility. There's a separate resource cited.
After you read the "stickies", I hope you post more! Also---are you being treated for your diabetes? By an endocrinologist? Is it considered under control? Bye for now, with best wishes, Vee
csaved38,
Just wanted to say I am sorry for the loss of your mother and how she suffered so much with diabetes . I lost someone very dear to me in the same way. As for the protien in your urine, deffinitely not normal. Veej gave you some great advice to check out. I tried to remember all of the different things my Dr. had me tested for that may apply to your situation,when I was diagnosed with Lupus, and, I remember her having me tested for Cushings disease as well, it was a blood test, I think it was called ANCA.
. I lost someone very dear to me in the same way. As for the protien in your urine, deffinitely not normal. Veej gave you some great advice to check out. I tried to remember all of the different things my Dr. had me tested for that may apply to your situation,when I was diagnosed with Lupus, and, I remember her having me tested for Cushings disease as well, it was a blood test, I think it was called ANCA.
