Itp and lupus

Do children who have itp go on to develop lupus? I'm so worried that my daughters itp is related ro something more serious. Any thoughts or answers ???

Bell:

A very small percentage do. However, I wouldn't spend any time worrying about it because it may not ever happen.

Some children are predisposed to Lupus and there is no way to know that at this point. Sometimes ITP is the first symptom and can precede Lupus by many years.

You can take some preventative measures to keep from triggering it. Known Lupus triggers are: Sun exposure - just make sure she has a lot of good sun screen on and never allow tanning beds. Try to stay away from Sulfa antibiotics, if possible. Do not feed her alfalfa.

Two other triggers are stress and illnesses, but there isn't much you can do about those.

What makes you think her ITP is related to something else?

Sandi I don't necessarily think it is related to something else. I just worry cause I read that some kids with itp can develop lupus later on. My husbands father her grandfather died of lupus complications. My daughter is a very healthy 6 year old. She has no other symptoms but the brusing she had when she was diagnosed with itp. Can exposure to sun bring out lupus or will it just make it worse if you have it. We live in Miami and we are constantly in the pool and beach. She never complains about the sun. I would really like to thank you for your reply. God bless you...

Bell:

The sun can actually trigger Lupus in predisposed individuals. A person can go for years with no problem in the sun and then suddenly develop symptoms.

It happened to me. I was diagnosed with ITP in 1998. I had no Lupus symptoms for 8 years and blood work was good. Then I started to have some physical symptoms such as feeling flu-like, muscle pain and stiffness and fatigue. I was tested and had an elevated ANA. Over the next two years, things just got worse with the blood work and I met the criteria.

Anyway, I was a sun worhipper all of my life and never had any problems until around 2007. I went to a tanning bed a few times and not six months later, I had a positive dsDNA which was the clincher for the Lupus diagnosis. It's not just tanning salons that can cause problems, over-exposure to the sun can too. UVA and UVB rays alter the body's DNA and can trigger Lupus. I was headed for it anyway, but I sure sped it up by trying to tan that one summer. It's a horrible price to pay. I also get sick when I am in flourescent lights for more than 10 minutes. That means I have to make shopping in any store a pretty fast run through.

As I said, don't spend time worrying about it, but try to remember to take precautions. Use a good SPF sunscreen and try to limit her time in the sun. It's better for her anyway, heck for anyone, to limit sun exposure because of skin cancer.

Don't go too overboard with avoiding the sun though. Big thing over here just now is the number of children getting rickets due to the use of sunscreen causing a lack of vitamin D.

Anything could happen to any of us and worrying about what hasn't happened is a waste of a worry. Lupus is a very, very rare follow up to ITP.

Very true. We have a low Vitamin D epidemic here too. I know plenty of people who have low D. However, it's much easier to treat that than Lupus. For someone who has a few red flags, caution isn't a bad idea.

I have a few relatives that pretty much avoid the sun due to their health issues. Overexposure to the sun can cause issues also, but I wonder about the affects the ingredients in sun screen have on the body?

Yeah, there is a lot of controversy about that too. You can't win.

My daughter, now 14, actually has a positive ANA & dSDNA, but really has no other symptoms. We recently visited a pediatric dermatologist because we were worried about her getting too much sun (she has a very, very dark tan)and we did not know if it was medically-induced or if it was just her natural skin tone. Unfortunately, we did not get any answers from the dermatologist, but we were able to get some sunscreen that has no chemicals in it. It is expensive so we are limiting the use to her face. She was breaking out in welts with every other sunscreen we tried. We think it is a reaction to the chemicals in the sunscreen. This new sunscreen is so much better! Anyways, we decided about a year ago that we were not going to worry about what could possibly happen. I could keep her out of the sun, but then she'd have a Vitamin D deficiency like my other daughter. Sandi is right, we can't win. We can only pray that our children end up living long and healthy lives!