“The Great Imitator”
Lupus is known as “the great imitator”, because its symptoms mimic many other illnesses. Symptoms can also be unclear, can come and go, and can change.
— Lupus Foundation of America
Clinicians rely upon a series of 11 criteria to diagnose the disease. According to the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) based classification for lupus, patients with 4 of the 11 criteria are diagnosed as lupus positive. Classification is based on:
- Symptoms
- Medical history
- Laboratory Tests
Laboratory Tests
Early diagnosis is critical in avoiding major organ damage
- Laboratory tests are used to monitor some of the ACR criteria
- Supplement clinical observations and judgment
- No currently available single test can give a definite “yes” or “no” answer
- Test results that are indicative of lupus may be due to other illnesses or can even be seen in healthy people
- A test result may be positive one time and negative another time
- Different laboratories may produce different test results
- Battery of tests that may be used in differential diagnoses include:
- Routine blood test (e.g. CBC)
- Antibody screening (e.g. ANA, anti-dsDNA)
- Other blood tests(e.g. complement, CRP, coagulation times)
- Urine analysis
- Tissue biopsies