For Men
Who Gets Lupus?
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), often called a "woman's disease," is anything but that:
- SLE can occur in either sex and at any age.
- However, SLE occurs 10-15 times more frequently among females of childbearing age than among young adult males.
- SLE predominates in young women for reasons that are not fully known. Most investigators believe that this is the result of the effects of hormones (like estrogen) on the immune system.
How Does Age Make A Difference?
The age during which lupus occurs
- Before puberty, approximately 1 male is affected for every 3 females.
- In the adult years, approximately 10 females are affected for every 1 male.
- After menopause in women (usually, after age 50), there are approximately 8 females affected for every 1 male.
- The decrease in the occurrence of lupus in postmenopausal women might be related to the fact that older men get lupus more than younger men, or that hormones have less of an effect in older women.
- Studies of lupus in the aging male are in progress.
- These differences in gender preference apply only to systemic lupus and not to discoid (skin) lupus.
Drug-induced lupus erythematosus
- Although it shares the same name, drug-induced lupus erythematosus (DILE) is not really a form of lupus erythematosus.
- More men than women develop drug-induced lupus erythematosus (DILE), since most of the medications that produce DILE are used more frequently in men.
- The three most common drugs that produce DILE are: