Autoimmune Disease in Minority Populations
Lupus, RA, and Sjögren's disproportionately affect Black women. Why education, awareness, and trust are essential to better outcomes.
Many autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and Sjögren's syndrome, disproportionately affect minority individuals, especially Black women. Osteoarthritis, driven in part by obesity, is also seen more often in Black communities.
Implicit bias in healthcare is especially worrying in women's gynecological and maternal health. Many women with autoimmune diseases face challenges with fertility and pregnancy and may have poorer outcomes due to complications like pregnancy-induced hypertension, preeclampsia and eclampsia, and pre-term delivery.
It's crucial that members of the Black community are educated about chronic inflammatory arthritis and autoimmune diseases, which are linked to an increased risk of heart disease and coronary events. According to the American Heart Association, African American women are less likely than Caucasian women to know that heart disease is the leading cause of death.
Many individuals, particularly Black women, distrust the healthcare system because of a long history of racial discrimination in the political and medical systems. That history is real, and rebuilding trust is part of a physician's responsibility.
Education about lifestyle modifications and treatments, including disease-modifying therapies that address local and systemic inflammation, is essential to reducing complications. Awareness saves lives.
Dr. Maggie Cadet, MD