What are autoimmune diseases?
In an autoimmune disease, the immune system mistakenly attacks the body’s own tissues. More than 80 such conditions are recognised, including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease, Sjögren’s disease, coeliac disease and myasthenia gravis. They affect women more often than men, and their causes involve a mix of genetic susceptibility and environmental triggers that is still not fully understood.
How they are treated today
- Corticosteroids — fast, broad suppression of inflammation, used cautiously because of long-term side effects.
- Conventional immunosuppressants such as methotrexate.
- Biologics that block specific immune signals — for example TNF, IL-17, IL-23 or IL-6 — or deplete B cells.
- JAK inhibitors — oral drugs that dampen several inflammatory pathways at once.
- FcRn blockers — lower harmful antibodies in antibody-driven diseases.
Because these drugs dial down immunity, they can raise the risk of infections, and patients are usually screened (for example for tuberculosis) before starting some of them.
What’s new
Researchers are testing ways to “reset” the immune system — CAR-T cells and T-cell engagers borrowed from cancer medicine have shown striking early results in severe lupus — along with BTK inhibitors and more precisely targeted biologics. Conditions that long had no approved medicine, such as Sjögren’s disease, now have candidates in late-stage trials.
Allergy and hives
This guide also covers other immune-driven conditions, such as chronic hives and food allergy. Below is every related RxWyre article, newest first — general information, not medical advice.
