Lupus disease can happen to anyone, especially young children. Until now, a cure has not been found for this deadly thousand faces disease. Even so, lupus can be controlled, especially if detected early.
Budi Setia Budiawan, a pediatrician at Hasan Sadikin Hospital Bandung, said that the method of diagnosing childhood and adult lupus includes 11 criteria. A total of 11 lupus criteria are in the form of symptoms and laboratory examinations. If four of the 11 criteria are found in the child, it is certain that lupus.
Budi said that the 11 criteria included malares, namely red cheeks that resembled butterflies. These malares must pass through the nose. The next criteria if exposed to the sun, the redness on the cheeks increases, there is arthritis (arthritis), spotting, sores in the mouth, urine comes out of protein where the test is positive or negative through the laboratory, there is fluid in the heart cavity, examination of fluid in the lungs, HB lowering, leukocyte reduction, and prolonged fever or fever.
“We have to get four of the 11 criteria, either from symptoms alone or through the laboratory,” said Budi, after commemorating lupus day in Bandung which falls this month.
According to him, lupus in children is generally characterized by the appearance of symptoms such as joint pain, swelling, red cheeks, and fever that does not go down and down. Within a month, he served less than 10 new lupus patients with severe and mild conditions.
His age is the average teenager or puberty.
Lupus disease can also occur from birth (neonatal). Characteristics, at birth the baby is yellow or has a heart defect. To check, it can be seen from the mother’s antibodies, it can be through the fluid in the uterus. It’s just that this method is still not popular in Indonesia ,? he explained.
When viewed from the sufferers, the ratio is more women than men, which is four to one. This occurs due to genetic, environmental, and hormonal factors. In women, especially during puberty, the hormone estrogen is high, which is a factor in the emergence of lupus.
“At any age, the level of severity can be different or not, because this disease has a thousand faces,” he said.
Budi explained that lupus is a disease caused by excess antibodies (body defenses). These antibodies fight against the body’s own cells.
Initially, parents panic when dealing with children who have lupus symptoms. But nowadays, lupus treatment is more aggressive. With the latest treatment, the antibodies of lupus sufferers can be suppressed so that they are not excessive. This medicine is given once a month. Even so, the drug has not yet been cured, but only suppresses antibodies.
“There was a patient of mine whose condition was severe when he arrived. But he has survived until now, even in college,” he said.
According to Budi, since the last five years, RSHS has started to deal with many lupus patients. This happened because people became aware of the symptoms of lupus and checked them out to a doctor.
“So far, it has not been detected, suddenly died. Not now. Local doctors are becoming aware, getting lupus patients to send to us or people coming to us,” he said, calling lupus patients from Bandung, Tasikmalaya, Garut, Cirebon, and Sulawesi.
According to him, the increase in lupus is generally occurring in Indonesia. Apart from the awareness factor, it is also due to environmental changes such as pollution and the lack of trees in cities. So that sunlight is not blocked which ultimately triggers lupus.