The best way to lower the costs of your autoimmune and other diseases using custom health insurance plans In an autoimmune disease, your immune system mistakenly attacks your body, like your joints or skin, considering them as foreign objects. Your body releases proteins called auto antibodies that attack your healthy cells, and make you sick. Some autoimmune diseases target only one organ – such as the pancreas, that causes Type 1 diabetes. Some other diseases, like systematic lupus erythematosus (SLE) affect the whole body of the patient. Certain autoimmune diseases, like multiple sclerosis and lupus run in families. There are more than 80 types of autoimmune diseases. Some of the most common ones are described below in brief. Type 1 Diabetes: The autoimmune system attacks pancreas that produces insulin hormone to regulate blood sugar level, resulting in Type 1 diabetes. Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA): Your autoimmune system attacks your joints, resulting in redness, soreness, warmth and stiffness in joints. Multiple sclerosis: The disease damages the coating surrounding the nerve cells, called myelin sheath. Damage to this protective coating slows the transmission speed of messages between your brain and spinal cord to and from the rest of your body. This can result in numbness, balancing problems, weakness, and trouble walking. Psoriasis: The condition will cause your skin cells to multiply too quickly, resulting in the formation of extra cells build up, inflamed red patches, and silvery white scales of plaque on the skin. Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD): The disease causes inflammation in different parts of your gastro intestinal (GI) tract. Crohn’s disease can affect any part of your GI tract, while ulcerative colitis affects only the lining of the large intestine or colon, and rectum. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis: The condition causes the slowing down of the production of thyroid hormone. Symptoms of Hashimoto’s disease include weight gain, hair loss, swelling of thyroid (goiter), and sensitivity to cold. Addison’s disease: This disease of your adrenal gland results in increased or decreased production of cortisol, aldosterone, and androgen hormones. Autoimmune vasculitis: Your body will attack your blood cells. The inflammation will result in the narrowing of arteries and veins, restricting the smooth flow of blood. Grave’s disease: Your body starts producing an excess amount of thyroid hormone. Symptoms include bulging eyes, nervousness, rapid heart rate, and brittle hair.
The symptoms of autoimmune disease will depend upon the part of your body affected. The disease tends to run in families. Women develop some autoimmune diseases more quickly than men. Diagnosing autoimmune disease You should consult your caregiver if you experience any of the above symptoms. Your doctor will diagnose your disease based on various tests. Common tests performed for the diagnosis of autoimmune diseases include:
Blood test immunoglobulin Immunofixation blood test Antinuclear antibody or ANA test C-Reactive Protein (CRP) test Pharmacogenetic tests Complete blood count (CBC) Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR)
Medications for autoimmune disease Once your disease has been diagnosed, the doctor will prescribe you medications to treat your condition. The common medications prescribed for the treatment of autoimmune disease include:
Anti-inflammatories Insulin injections Pain killers Plasma exchanges Medications for depression and anxiety Corticosteroids Sleeping medications
For specific treatment needs, your primary healthcare provider may refer you to a dermatologist, gastroenterologist, endocrinologist, or dermatologist. However, you can lower the costs of the treatment of autoimmune and other diseases for your employees by providing them with a health insurance plan. However, amidst many health insurance plans available to your employees, it may not be possible to determine the best health insurance plan for them. It’s here that the expertise of PrudentRx program can help you. The insurance experts at PrudentRx Program can help you choose the best plan for your employees to help them with CVS copay optimization, and get the most benefits from its extensive PrudentRx drug list. For more details, PrudentRx FAQs can be referred to where you will find answers to some common questions that may be bothering you.