The existential experience of everyday life with systemic lupus erythematosus

Digital Narratives of Living With Lupus: Lived Experiences and Meanings for Latin American and Latino Patients and Their Families

OBJECTIVE

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) disproportionately affects Latin American and Latino populations, with worse outcomes compared to nonminority populations. Understanding patients' views is critical to provide culturally competent care. The objective of this research is to analyze lived experiences with SLE from comments made by Latin American and Latino patients, and their relatives and friends, on the public Facebook group "Hablemos de Lupus" (in English: "Let's Talk about Lupus").

METHODS

Deidentified narratives posted as a reaction to the most popular resources shared by the page were extracted using the Facepager application. We conducted a thematic analysis under an interpretative medical anthropology framework.

RESULTS

Five core themes were demonstrated by social media comments: lived experiences with lupus, religious/spiritual thoughts, metaphors, heredity, and experiences of family and friends. Being diagnosed with lupus is perceived as a life-changing event. The fluctuating course of the disease causes uncertainty, and the perception of invisibility within the patient's social circle generates feelings of being misunderstood. Faith and spiritual thoughts are coping strategies. Patients use metaphors about the disease's meaning and their lived experiences (the purple butterfly, not belonging, bellicose metaphors) to communicate with others. Relatives and friends are impacted by their loved one's distress.

CONCLUSION

Patients perceive lupus as an unpredictable illness and use metaphors to foster empathy and communicate their experiences to others. Religion is as important as medical treatment to cope with the disease, and the experience of having lupus extends to family and friends. Findings can be used to improve physician-patient communication and lupus education campaigns in the Latin American and Latino population.

Patient Experiences of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Findings From a Systematic Review, Meta-Summary, and Meta-Synthesis

OBJECTIVE

To explore the experience of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

METHODS

A systematic review of qualitative studies published in English in the past 10 years and identified through the PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, and Web of Science databases was performed following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. The methodologic quality of each included study was assessed using the Critical Appraisal Screening Programme tool. Study findings were then subjected to a meta-summary and meta-synthesis.

RESULTS

Twenty-six studies with a good overall methodologic quality were included, documenting the experience of 565 adult patients (95% women). A total of 17 codes emerged, summarizing the life experience of SLE patients; the most and least frequent codes in the meta-summary were "feeling not as I usually do" (69.2%) and "having wishes" (7.7%). The codes were then categorized into 5 main themes, summarizing the experience of living with SLE: 1) "experiencing waves of emotions due to the unpredictable nature of the disease," 2) "trying to live an ordinary life," 3) "listening to and obeying the body's limitations," 4) "reviewing my life projects," and 5) "dealing with future uncertainties."

CONCLUSION

Several qualitative studies have been published to date using good methodologic approaches. According to the findings, SLE negatively impacts patient experiences by affecting multiple dimensions of their daily lives, with fatigue and pain as the most frequent symptoms.

Systemic lupus erythematosus: overview, management and COVID-19

Systemic lupus erythematosus is a complex multi-system disease affecting various systems of the body. The aetiology remains unclear; however, it is thought that immune system dysregulation, environmental factors and viral susceptibility can trigger the disease. Mortality remains high due to cardiovascular disease, infection and lupus nephritis. Clinical assessment should comprise an extensive history, detailed physical examination and relevant laboratory tests. Management begins with an in-depth understanding of disease-specific complications and associated comorbidities. Treatments should be based on a shared decision-making process between the patient and the clinician. Review by a specialist nurse is vital for ongoing support and education. Current treatments can increase the risk of COVID-19 infection and disease severity, so caution is needed in the current climate. New treatments are emerging and offer hope to those with refractory disease.

From diagnosis to complications: experiences of those who live with systemic lupus erythematosus

ABSTRACT Objective: To understand how people with lupus experience the diagnosis and how they deal with complications arising from the disease. Method: Qualitative study, whose data were collected between February and July 2019, through semi-structured interviews with 26 individuals and submitted to content analysis. Results: Three categories emerged that show illness from lupus as a difficult experience, permeated by sadness, fear and suffering, which, in addition to being linked to society’s lack of knowledge about the disease, negatively impacts the lives of those who experience it. Furthermore, they show that the time of living with the disease favors the development of self-care strategies and greater therapeutic adherence and, consequently, longer periods of disease remission. Considerations: More disclosure about the disease and its implications in the daily lives of those affected is essential, culminating in greater understanding of family, friends and colleagues and improvements in health care and quality of life for these people.

Patients who experience systemic lupus erythematosus and leg ulcer: phenomenological approach

OBJECTIVE

To understand the experience of a woman with systemic lupus erythematosus and leg ulcers with cutaneous calcinosis.

METHODS

An experience report based on the social phenomenology of Alfred Schutz, conducted with a young woman undergoing treatment in an outpatient service.

RESULTS

The disease manifested itself in adolescence and brought emotional instability associated with body image concern and social isolation. The discontinuation of the studies triggered financial limitations with implications for treatment. The presence of ulcers aggravated by skin calcification makes the process of getting sick tiring and painful. Interpersonal relationships are resources for coping with situations experienced.

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

Patients with lupus may have social, affective, and family life, even in the face of the limitations imposed by the disease. However, the emergence of leg ulcer with calcinosis changes this situation.

DUALITY OF LIVING WITH SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS: FLUCTUATING BETWEEN “GOOD DAYS” AND “BAD DAYS”

ABSTRACT Objective: to learn the perception of individuals with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus about living with the disease. Method: an exploratory and descriptive research study, of a qualitative nature, carried out with 26 individuals undergoing treatment at the rheumatology outpatient clinic of a university hospital in southern Brazil. The data were collected in the period from February to July 2019, by means of semi-structured interviews that were audio-recorded and subjected to the thematic modality of content analysis. Results: a category entitled: “Fluctuating between good and bad days in living with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus”, composed of two subcategories that portray that living with Lupus is something unstable/fickle, emerged from the results. This is because, as a result of the periods of remission and exacerbation of the signs and symptoms of the disease, the patients experience a paradox of constant oscillation between ups and downs. Conclusion: it was learned that individuals with Lupus perceive that living with the disease is marked by an oscillation between good days and bad days, which are related to periods of remission and exacerbation of the manifestations of the disease, respectively.

Life course changes provoked by chronic disease: A study on everyday life for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

OBJECTIVE

This study examined patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) as a means to explore the impacts of chronic disease on life courses.

METHODS

A semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with nine patients in China in 2017; participants were included based on their having or having had facial butterfly erythema.

RESULTS

The study focused on both the disease's impact on the patients' health and on their daily lives. Four core themes emerged: visible changes in the patient's bodies, social dilemmas, "the encouragement of disease", and a new perspective on the relationship between disease and health. One important finding was that the occurrence of a chronic disease did not have only negative repercussions; some patients felt that there were advantages to being sick. Chronic disease resulted in a reworking of daily life. The patients developed a self-referential model of healing.

CONCLUSION

The distinct interpretations of the same disease offered by different patients served to yield a more complete understanding of the disease. People with SLE adjust their thinking about the disease based on personal feelings as well as experiences and pursue a dialogue on their illness based on the disease pattern unique to them. The meaning that disease had for the patients was not limited to negative connotations.

Self-reported disease severity in women with systemic lupus erythematosus

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), pathology with net feminine predominance, is one of the most complex autoimmune diseases and has major impact on patients' life. The aim is to identify patient and disease-related factors associated with self-perceived disease severity in female SLE patients. This cross-sectional study enrolled 73 women fulfilling the 2012 Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinic (SLICC) criteria. SLE disease activity was assessed by the Systemic Lupus Activity Measure (SLAM) score and overall damage by the SLICC/American College of Rheumatology (ACR) index. Patients' general characteristics, associated conditions as well as SLE specific clinical involvements and therapeutic principles were also noted. Fatigue was assessed by FACIT-fatigue scale. Self-perceived disease severity was assessed using numerical rating scales (1-10 NRSs), to evaluate the disease severity at inclusion (1-10 NRS now) and worst severity anytime during disease history (1-10 NRS worst ever). In regard to worst ever lupus severity, 54.8% of patients responded with 9 or 10, while none with 1 or 2 even if only 22.9% of the patients responded with 7 or more for disease severity at inclusion (1-10 NRS now). Women with higher 1-10 NRS now answers had also higher 1-10 NRS worst ever, SLAM, SLICC, and FACIT-fatigue scores. They associated more frequently anxiety/depression diagnosis, antiphospholipid syndrome, joint involvement as well as treatments with corticosteroids. Self-reported disease severity worst ever, anxiety/depression diagnosis, fatigue, and the daily dose of corticosteroids were independently associated with patients' perception on lupus severity at inclusion: OR (95% CI), 2.13 (1.15-3.94) p = 0.017, 6.67 (1.11-39.97) p = 0.038, 1.10 (1.02-1.19) p = 0.018, and 1.11 (1.02-1.21) p = 0.020, respectively. The vast majority of patients identified severe and very severe events during their disease history, results that raise awareness of burden concerning lupus occurrence in women's life. Self-perceived lupus severity is multifactorial, influenced also by factors less considered in the SLE management like fatigue and the depression/anxiety disorders, but also by the previous patient's experience.