Autoimmune diseases in families

• By Lee3
• Posted September 24, 2008 at 10:55 am
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Hi..
My father has psoriatic arthritis and psoriasis, my sister Rheumatoid arthritis and possible SLE, my son has hypogammaglobulinemia and multiple severe anaphylactic food and antibiotic allergies, as well as eosinophilic gastritis and colitis, one of my daughters has hypothryoidism, as well as is ANA positive ( 1:640) and has psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and possibly early SLE, my youngest daughter has severe autoimmune disease which we believe has caused her severe intestinal pseudo obstruction, is also immune deficient and is manifesting an odd autoimmune disease response presenting as graft versus host disease (rejection of small intestine in her case but she has had NO transplant). My hubby has mild psoriasis and a bit of arthritis, his mother had RA as well as ulcerative colitis and fibromyalgia, he and I both have mild Mitral valve prolapse and our children share a "syndrome" effecting bones-osteoporosis, and joints -hypermobile, all have GERD, some intestinal inflamatory disease and asthma as well as allergies. YEP...genes and manifestation of autoimmune disease for sure have effected my kids and have come down from grandparents etc..

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• By caringcounterparts
• Posted September 24, 2008 at 3:37 pm
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Thank you for asking this question! It has one I have wondered about, since I noticed it in my family, too.

My sister has Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, my mother had Multiple Sclerosis, and I have Sjogrens and an unidentified condition (so far) that looks like Rheumatoid Arthritis. All three of us had/have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.

From what I understand, autoimmune reactions in the body come as overcompensation in response to severe illness, traumatic event, etc. The immune response kicks in to help manage viral and bacterial invaders on the body during the event, but mistakes parts of the body as viral. So it keeps fighting and fighting it. Perhaps there's something in the genes that determines who has parts of their body that appear to be an invader after triggered by illness / trauma, or we inherit immune systems that can't tell the difference between healthy tissue and invaders.

However, I understand that there are specific viruses that can trigger autoimmune conditions, such as MS. So perhaps it is what we are exposed to at some times of our lives that makes us susceptible later. One question would be, can a long-lasting virus be handed down from parent to child during pregnancy? Could all of us who have autoimmune be fighting the same virus or family of viruses?

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• By AmyTx
• Posted October 21, 2008 at 9:20 am
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I have SLE (lupus) and i have pretty much had it my whole life. My doctor said its hereditary but i cannot find anyone in my family with an autoimmune problem.. my sister is borderline SLE (1:80)

by the way when my ana first came back it was (1:640) and it flucuates.. it had been as high as 2400 and something..I do know I had mono as a child but i have always been sensitive to the sun.. of course with full blown lupus now i have had MAJOR issues...the key is early treatment to prevent damage that was one thing i was unaware about.

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• By Valarie
• Posted December 11, 2008 at 10:31 pm
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Just what I have learned is that I myself have an autoimmune disease called Graves, and was told that my children are at a higher risk of getting this than someone whos parents didn't have it, I am also told that I have a 20% higher chance of having a 2nd autoimmune disease than the average joe off the street that doesn't. Isn't that just lovely.

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