Lupus is an autoimmune disease, which means that the immune system attacks the body's own healthy tissues, organs and cells. The inflammation caused by lupus can affect many organs, including joints, skin, kidneys...

In a new study, published in eClinicalMedicine, researchers conducted a survey of 676 people living with lupus and 400 doctors, as well as in-depth interviews with 69 people living with autoimmune systemic rheumatic diseases and 50 doctors.

The team questioned the patients about when their neurological symptoms appeared and the order in which the symptoms occurred when the disease was manifesting itself.

One of the most common symptoms reported was disturbed dream sleep, experienced by three out of five patients, a third of whom reported the appearance of this symptom more than a year before the onset of lupus.

When the researchers interviewed the patients, they found that three out of five lupus patients and one out of three with other rheumatology-related diseases reported increasingly disturbed dream sleep.

"It's important for doctors to talk to their patients about these kinds of symptoms and to take the time to note the individual evolution of each patient's symptoms," says lead author of the study Melanie Sloan, quoted by Sci Tech Daily.

"Patients often know which symptoms are a sign that their disease is about to worsen, but both patients and doctors can be reluctant to talk about mental health and neurological symptoms, especially if they don't realize that these can be part of autoimmune diseases," concludes Sloan.

The importance of recognizing these symptoms was highlighted by reports that some patients had initially been misdiagnosed or even hospitalized with a psychotic episode and/or suicidal ideation, which was only later discovered to be the first sign of their autoimmune disease.

When Nightmares Turn Real: Sleep’s Early Warning Signs of Autoimmune Disease
Nightmares and hallucinations could be early signs of autoimmune diseases like lupus, potentially improving early diagnosis and treatment, according to a new study. An increase in nightmares and hallucinations – or ‘daymares’ – could indicate the beginning of autoimmune diseases such as lupus. Th
SciTechDailyUniversity of Cambridge

The researchers argue that there needs to be greater recognition that these types of neurological and mental health symptoms can act as an early warning sign that an individual is approaching an "outbreak", in which the illness worsens over a period.