A condition in which the body recognizes its own tissues as foreign and directs an immune response against them.

A disease in which the immune system mistakenly identifies healthy tissues and organs as threats and responds by attacking and destroying them.

A disorder resulting from loss of function or tissue destruction of an organ or multiple organs, arising from humoral or cellular immune responses of the individual to his own tissue constituents. It may be systemic (e.g., systemic lupus erythematosus), or organ specific, (e.g., thyroiditis).

A disorder that may result in abnormality, impaired function or damage of one or more organs or tissues, arising from autoreactive humoral or cellular immune responses.

Disorders that are characterized by the production of antibodies that react with host tissues or immune effector cells that are autoreactive to endogenous peptides.

(autoimmune disorder) Heading term for a diverse group of disorders characterized by pathologenic immune reactions to autologous (self) tissue; for nonnpatholgical, developmental, or phenomenological aspects of autoimmunity, use AUTOIMMUNITY.

Your body's immune system protects you from disease and infection. But if you have an autoimmune disease, your immune system attacks healthy cells in your body by mistake. Autoimmune diseases can affect many parts of the body. No one is sure what causes autoimmune diseases. They do tend to run in families. Women - particularly African American, Hispanic American, and Native American women - have a higher risk for some autoimmune diseases. There are more than 80 types of autoimmune diseases, and some have similar symptoms. This makes it hard for your health care provider to know if you really have one of these diseases, and if so, which one. Getting a diagnosis can be frustrating and stressful. Often, the first symptoms are fatigue, muscle aches and a low fever. The classic sign of an autoimmune disease is inflammation, which can cause redness, heat, pain and swelling. The diseases may also have flare-ups, when they get worse, and remissions, when symptoms get better or disappear. Treatment depends on the disease, but in most cases one important goal is to reduce inflammation. Sometimes doctors prescribe corticosteroids or other drugs that reduce your immune response.

(autoimmune disorder) A disorder characterized by loss of function or tissue destruction of an organ or multiple organs, arising from humoral or cellular immune responses of the individual to his own tissue constituents.

In autoimmune disorders, the immune system produces antibodies to an endogenous antigen (autoantigen). The following hypersensitivity reactions may be involved: Type II: Antibody-coated cells, like any similarly coated foreign particle, activate the complement system, resulting in tissue injury.