Goodpasture’s syndrome is a condition marked by your own antibodies destroying collagen in the kidneys or lungs or both. The collagen damaged in the kidney is in a part that assists in filtering waste and excess fluid out of the blood. As for the lungs, the targeted collagen contributes to the elasticity of the aveoli.
The detrimental immune response causes inflammation in the filtering units, aka glomerulonephritis, and air sac bleeding. Kidney and lung damage can result should the destructive antibodies be left unchecked.
Any health condition that involves the immune system reacting and launching antibodies designed to attack itself is considered an autoimmune disease. Thus, Goodpasture syndrome is classified as an autoimmune disease.
Research has identified a couple of components believed to trigger this autoimmune disease. They are respiratory infection caused by a virus, breathing in hydrocarbon solvents, exposure to Paraquat (a weed killer) or a genetic predisposition of type II hypersensitivity reaction. And Goodpsture’s syndrome affects men more often than women.
Symptoms of Goodpasture’s syndrome depend on the organ affected. Should your kidney be under attack, this autoimmune disease symptoms include:
- pallor
- edema
- fatigue
- weakness
- hematuria
- proteinuria
- hypertension
- loss of appetite
- burning urination
If your health condition entails the lungs, then you’ll experience symptoms involving breathing difficulty, paleness, cough and hemoptysis. Symptoms of Goodpasture’s syndrome often develop rapidly, yet the pace can happen much slower in some.
As with most autoimmune diseases, Goodpasture syndrome is treated with immunosuppressant and corticosteroid drugs. Plasmapheresis is sometimes performed to remove harmful antibodies from your blood. If your kidneys fail, dialysis or kidney transplant may be required as well. Other forms of treatment may be used to control blood pressure and swelling.