Thyroid conditions - Hashimoto's disease
Hashimoto's disease is a common cause of hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid). It is an autoimmune condition. Immune system cells attack the thyroid gland, causing inflammation. This reduces the thyroid's ability to make hormones. The condition ... [... more]
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Guillain-Barre syndrome - Better Health Channel.
Guillain-Barrè syndrome is an autoimmune condition. It is a form of nerve inflammation resulting in a spreading paralysis. The cause is unknown, but the trigger seems to be certain acute viral or bacterial infections. Most people recover, but it .. [... more]
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Addison's disease
Addison's disease is a rare endocrine disorder. It occurs when the adrenal glands cannot produce sufficient hormones (corticosteroids). It is thought to be caused by an autoimmune disorder. Addison's disease is managed with steroid ... [... more]
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Autoimmune disorders - Better Health Channel.
An autoimmune disorder occurs when a person's immune system mistakenly attacks their own body tissues. Different autoimmune disorders include diabetes, Graves' disease, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid ... [... more]
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Polymyositis
Polymyositis is a connective tissue disease that triggers inflammation and muscular weakness. The cause is unknown, but polymyositis is thought to be an autoimmune disorder, possibly triggered by a viral infection of muscle tissue. Polymyositis ... [... more]
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Lupus explained
Lupus (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus or SLE) is an auto-immune condition that causes various tissues in the body to become inflamed. Lupus is one of a number of auto-immune illnesses, which means that instead of the person's immune system ... [... more]
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Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura
Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is a rare autoimmune disorder, characterised by the destruction of blood-clotting platelets by antibodies. The cause of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura is unknown, but it is thought that some kinds of ... [... more]
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Myasthenia gravis
Myasthenia gravis is an autoimmune disease characterised by muscular weakness. The symptoms are caused by the immune system interfering with the transmission of messages from the nerves to the muscles. There is no cure. Myasthenia gravis is an ... [... more]
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Sjogren's syndrome
Sjogren's syndrome is an autoimmune disease that mainly affects the eyes and salivary glands, but can affect the sweat glands. These glands are attacked by the immune system, for reasons unknown. Although there is no cure, proper treatment should ... [... more]
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Bell's palsy
Bell's palsy is a paralysis or weakness of the muscles on one side of the face. The cause is unknown, although infection or autoimmune responses are suspected. Bell's palsy resolves completely in around 90 per cent of cases, given time. Bell's ... [... more]
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GoodMedicine
Rheumatoid Arthritis is a complex disorder which causes inflammation (pain, heat and swelling) in the joints and sometimes other organs of the body. Rheumatoid arthritis is an "auto-immune" disease; this means that a person's natural defence ... [... more]
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Liver problems - primary biliary cirrhosis
Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is chronic inflammation and scarring of the bile ducts within the liver. The cause is unknown and there is no cure. PBC seems to be associated with other autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, ... [... more]
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