Frequently these diseases, when undiagnosed and untreated, are associated with a poor prognosis for the patient. In many autoimmune diseases, particularly early in the disease course—when it is most modifiable—patients often present with overlapping clinical features, making diagnosis by symptoms alone nearly impossible.1
Using clinical diagnostics from your local pathology laboratory to look beneath the surface in this clinically challenging field can provide key diagnostic clues to aid your differential diagnosis. This can mean that your patient is diagnosed sooner in the course of their disease and receive treatment that can potentially have a significant impact on prognosis.
Diagnosis and treatment is key to helping patients manage symptoms for a range of autoimmune diseases, which include:
Autoimmune diseases in women: A threat to women2
Data highlights that gender bias toward females is high (9:1)3 in the majority of autoimmune diseases, and prevalence can be especially high in certain diseases, such as thyroid diseases, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and Sjögren’s syndrome. These diseases also dominate the list of the top 10 leading causes of death among women.4
Systemic diseases examples include:
In many autoimmune diseases, patients often present with overlapping clinical features, making differential diagnosis by symptoms alone nearly impossible.1