my wife has recently been diagnosed with Lupus, she has been treated for rheumatoid arthritis for the past 20 years

[anjo]

having found this site I have read all about Lupus, in our opinion she must have been suffering from this for several years.We are worried about any internal organ damage that might have occured before she was diagnosed and being treated for Lupus

[NeeNaw]

totally understand your looking for answers ....... if you ask any of the members here who have been diagnosed, upon reflection they can probably trace the origins of lupus going back many years. As for internal organ damage, your wife's rheumatologist should be running many tests. Firstly there will be blood tests and if anything is found, even a small deviation, they will investigate further. Although it is possible that she has no internal organ damage at all. Fingers X'd for a good outcome. God Bless

[Barnclown]

Yes, I felt that way when i was diagnosed last spring after decades of nhs treatment for what seemed like 101 other conditions, most of which turn out to be related to my lupus.

I guess different specialists do things in various ways, but In the months following the first appointment with my rheumatologist, a series of routine 'baseline' tests were conducted: first loads of blood tests, then individual tests of heart, nerves, lungs, and eyes. I was told that these were to record my condition in general at the outset of diagnosis, so that changes in my status would be clear as treatment progressed. So any organ damage identified would also be noted, and considered right away. This has helped me feel a bit less anxious about any existing damage, to keep calm and carry on during this first year in treatment, and as Neenaw suggested: seems no siginficant internal organ damage has turned up... but I'm taking all this one step at a time. I wish you both all the best while you go forward with this.

Take care

[Melinda]

I have lupus/rheumatoid arthritis. They are very simular as is the treatment for them. Like lupus, ra can sometimes affect the internal organs. As your wife was being treated for ra i would think that she was being monitered for any changes in her blood.