Disease Awareness
Autoimmune conditions
Autoimmune (AI) diseases occur when the body tissues are attacked by its own immune system. There are approximately 40 million people in Europe and USA suffering from AI conditions.
Autoimmune diseases are more frequent in women than in men. It is felt that the estrogen of females may influence the immune system to predispose some women to autoimmune diseases. Furthermore, the presence of one autoimmune disease increases the chance for developing another simultaneous autoimmune disease.
Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, inflammatory condition of the nervous system and is the most common, non-traumatic, disabling neurological disease in young adults, with most sufferers developing the disease between the ages of 20 and 40.
The World Health Organization estimates that up to 2.5 million people suffer from MS worldwide. Women are affected 1.8 times more frequently than men. While symptoms can vary, the most common symptoms of MS include blurred vision, numbness or tingling in the limbs and problems with strength and coordination.
MS develops as a result of damage to the myelin sheath of the nerves which interferes with their normal function and leads to loss of muscle control. MS can either be progressive or be characterised by periods of relapse and remission; the unpredictable nature of the disease makes life very hard for patients. The relapsing forms of MS are the most common.
Haemophilia A
Haemophilia A is a serious bleeding disorder affecting primarily males. It is currently managed with infusions of Factor VIII. There are approximately 12,000 sufferers in the USA and a similar number in Europe.
Between 20 and 30% of patients develop inhibitors to Factor VIII. This has serious consequences because it decreases the efficacy of the treatment and can result in joint damage, brain damage and, ultimately, death. There are currently no treatments available to prevent or treat the development of neutralising antibodies.
Graves' disease
Graves' disease is an autoimmune disease. It most commonly affects the thyroid, frequently causing it to enlarge to twice its size or more (goiter), become overactive, with related hyperthyroid symptoms such as increased heartbeat, muscle weakness, disturbed sleep, and irritability. It can also affect the eyes, causing bulging eyes (proptosis). It affects other systems of the body, including the skin, heart, circulation and nervous system.
It affects up to 2% of the female population, sometimes appears after childbirth, and has a female:male incidence of 5:1 to 10:1. It has a strong hereditary component; when one identical twin has Graves' disease, the other twin will have it 25% of the time. Smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke is associated with the eye manifestations but not the thyroid manifestations.
