“Why does lupus have a huge impact on the heart?”
My daughter was diagnosed with lupus last year, and now she has several issues with her heart. All of them are serious as well. She's in and out of the hospital, despite treatment, and I really can't watch her suffer any more. Why does lupus have this kind of effect on the heart?
2 Answers
Unfortunately, Lupus in every patient is different. It can attack any of the major organs including the heart, lungs, kidney, liver, gut and even the brain. Her Lupus is still active and continuing to affect her heart. This will improve once the optimal therapy that your daughter is responsive to is found. Patience is key and continue to communicate closely with her rheumatologist.
Lupus can affect different parts of the heart and, depending on the part and the extent of involvement, symptoms can range from mild to severe. In most pediatric patients with lupus, the heart is not affected directly, but only as a result of poorly controlled hypertension. Nonetheless, the heart can be affected directly by lupus. It is unknown why some patients have cardiac
involvement and others do not.
involvement and others do not.
