It is hoped that this Guide to Diagnosis and Treatment will be used as a Reference by General Practitioners and Associated Health Professionals seeing patients who present with a variety of symptoms which are not easily categorised.

My thanks go to all the medical consultants and health professionals who provided the individual chapters for this guide and to those who assisted with reviewing the manuscript for medical terms, drug usage etc and gave very helpful suggestions. I am grateful to Dr Nicola Erb for her advice and encouragement during my ongoing ‘Battle with Lupus’.

There are many people struggling with pain, fatigue, rashes and swellings who look to General Practitioners and Associated Health Professionals for help. I hope this book will assist, where appropriate, with making the lupus diagnosis and setting patients on the correct treatments to ease their symptoms and live more comfortable lives.

Yvonne Norton MBE
Vice-Chair & Trustee - Hon Life Vice-President LUPUS UK

Please note: throughout this guide 'lupus' refers to Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
The authors of the individual chapters will be pleased to offer any advice or further information which may be required by General Practitioners or Associated Health Professionals.

LUPUS UK thanks the Roddick Foundation for the most generous donation which has helped make this publication possible and GSK (GlaxoSmithKline) for providing a financial grant to support the printing costs.

Additional Support:
Thanks go to the following for assistance with reviewing and advice in addition to the
chapter authors:
Prof George Kitas
Dr Christos Koutsianas
Dr Elena Moraitis
Prof Phil Murray
Dr Hari Amrik
Dr Danni Li

If you would like a hard copy of the Guide, this is available free of charge to GPs and Health Professionals by providing your full details to National Office on 01708 731251 or [email protected].