Lupus is an autoimmune disease, which means that the immune
system mistakes the body's own tissues as foreign invaders and
attacks them. Some people with lupus suffer only minor
inconvenience. Others suffer significant lifelong disability.
Lupus affects people of African, Asian, or Native American
descent three times as often as it affects whites. Nine out of
10 people with lupus are women. The disease usually strikes
between age 15 and 45, although it can occur in older
individuals. There are two kinds of lupus: Discoid lupus
erythematosus (DLE). Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). DLE
mainly affects skin that is exposed to sunlight and doesn’t
typically affect vital internal organs. Discoid (circular) skin
lesions often leave scars after healing of the lesions. SLE is
more serious: It affects the skin and other vital organs, and
can cause a raised, scaly, butterfly-shaped rash across the
bridge of the nose and cheeks that can leave scars if untreated.
SLE can also affect other parts of the skin elsewhere on