The 411 on Lupus
A look at how the disease affects African-Americans.
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Understanding Lupus - The recent death of natural hair blogger Domineque Banks, 27, shows just how deadly lupus can be. But do you know what lupus is? Read more about this autoimmune disease, how it affects us and Black celebrities who are living with it. —(@kelleent) Kellee Terrell (Photo: Longhairdontcare2011 via Youtube)
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What Is Lupus? - Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease that wreaks havoc on the skin, joints and organs. Normally, one’s immune system fights off infections by creating antibodies to protect from such “invaders” by attacking them. Yet with lupus, your immune system can’t tell the difference between healthy tissues or invaders, so they attack everything including healthy tissue.(Photo: GettyImages)
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Types of Lupus - There are three types of lupus: One that affects certain parts of the body (systemic lupus erythematosus); lupus that mainly affects the skin (discoid or cutaneous lupus), and lupus that is caused by medicine (drug-induced lupus). (Photo: BIOPHOTO ASSOCIATES/GettyImages)
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What Are the Symptoms? - Lupus looks different in different people and it can also look like another illness, which makes it hard to diagnose. Some common symptoms include: fever and fatigue; joint pain and stiffness; rashes; lesions; chest pain; blue or white fingers when its cold; dry eyes; headaches; confusion and memory loss to name a few. (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
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Risk Factors - According to Mayo Clinic, the most common risk factors for lupus are gender (9 out of 10 people with lupus are women); age (lupus can impact anyone, but most people are diagnosed between the ages of 15-40); and race (lupus is more common among African-Americans, Asians and Latinos).(Photo: Mint Images - Tim Robbins/Getty Images)
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