[Salopsally]

Just wondered if anyone knows if SLE can have any effect on cholesterol levels? My GP is unsure why my levels are high when I have a healthy diet and my levels for the good fats are good.
Has anyone had any experience of this?
Sal x

 

[keebler]

Hi Sal,

Here is some information I found for you. I think some high cholesterol is inherited. No matter how much my hubby dieted his cholesterol would remain high. His mother had high cholesterol.
I know lupus has a role in it too.

Heart attacks
It was discovered some years ago that a number of lupus patients who have seemingly recovered from their lupus still suffer from coronary disease and have an increased chance of a heart attack. The reasons for this are not clearly known although considerable research work is now going on to look at possible risks. Certainly, steroids have been implicated although they are not the major culprit. Some patients with lupus have persistently raised and other lipids. Modern treatment is very effective in reducing these. Most recently antiphospholipid antibodies have been implicated in the clotting process in coronary arteries as well as in other arteries and it may well be that taking regular blood-thinning medicines such as low-dose aspirin will be shown to reduce this risk.

Here is the web page I found that infromation.

http://www.uklupus.co.uk/fact4.html

I hope this helped answer your question.

Love,
Lyn

 

[Salopsally]

Thanks Lyn for your help.
I thought there might be a bit more response from my question. My GP is interested too but I did tell her about steriods maybe being a factor. Thats something we hadnt thought of.
Cheers again for your help.
Sal x

 

[Sage Hen]

Hi Sal,

I also have high cholesterol. I take Crestor for it. I take fish oil also, for artery problems and thickening my dr, says is related to the lupus. Another draw back, from a late diagnosis.

I did have high cholesterol before starting on pred. It doesn't run in my family, neither does diabetes, which I also have. I had it before taking pred, also.

I believe these are directly related to my having lupus..

I take low dose aspirin also. Plaquenil has slight blood thinning properties also.

Best Wishes,
Sandy

 

[Salopsally]

Thanks Sandy,
Its all food for thought. Ive recently started Plaquenil so thats good news that it helps lower cholesterol and Im trying to take the products with plant sterols in. Hopefully things will look better in a few months when I have another test.
Hard to know what to put down to Lupus sometimes or whether to treat it as a separate thing.
My GP doesnt want me to take statins yet as she says it will give me joint and muscle pain which Im just being relieved of with the Plaquenil.
Thanks for your comments it helps hearing other peoples experiences.
Cheers
Sal x

 

[Katharine]

Hi Sally,

I haven't replied before as, although I have high cholesterol, it is most likely a mix of hereditary and prednisolone. I have just started meds for it as it doesn't seem to be going away on its own.

I do know that some people may have high cholesterol but also if their GOOD cholesterol is also high then it is less serious than someone who only has high BAD cholesterol... sorry my experience stops there

Katharine

 

[Lily]

Hi there

To anyone with high cholesterol and any other symptoms to do with thyroid malfunction make sure you get your thyroid checked out. A good friend of mind just diagnosed with Hashimotos suddenly had high cholesterol crop up in blood tests, her doc wanted her to go on statins. Prior to that she was fine and her diet is such that it should not have been a problem. So she insisted that something else was not right with her other symptoms and that she wouldn't take the statins until she got it sorted. Now that her Hashi's is being treated the cholesterol is back down to where it should be. All that after one month of treatment!

love
Lily

 

[Salopsally]

Thanks Katharine and Lily,
I must look up Hashimotos because Im not sure what that is.
Ooo there is always something it seems to chase up and get to the bottom of.
Is it true then Katharine that Prednisilone could cause a high cholesterol? I was on steroids non stop for over 3 years and thats when my cholesterol seems to have gone unexplainably high. Perhaps that is why then.
Seems like we are always learning with this disease and Im sure we probably dont even know the half of it yet.
Cheers
Sal x