arthritis today

Autoimmune diseases are often the first ones to pop up on the whiteboard.
In fact, if you are one of the 19 million viewers who tune in each Tuesday
to watch Dr. House solve that week's medical mystery you might think
lupus, juvenile arthritis (JA), vasculitis, dermatomyositis, scleroderma,
Wegener's granulomatosis, and a laundry list of other chronic autoimmune
and arthritis-related diseases are as common as colds.
Actually most are relatively rare. Only about 300,000 children in the U.S.
have JA, for example, according to the Arthritis Foundation. And approximately
1.5 million Americans have some form of lupus, according to the Lupus Foundation
of America,Inc.
Autoimmune diseases are perfect for the dramatic purposes because they're so
hard to diagnosis, says the show's Emmy award-winning executive producer,
David Shore. "We look for diseases that can manifest in many different ways and
affect many systems." he says. "Unfortunately, autoimmunity is the winner in that
lottery.
"Autoimmunity" is an umbrella term for diseases that can affect diverse systems or
organs in the body, giving the writers plenty to choose from. As symptons pile up on
the whiteboard - fatigue, inflamation, kidney distress, a rash - any or all could point
to an autoimmune disease (or not).