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Systemic Lupus ErythematosusU.S Department of Health and Human Services National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Information Clearinghouse The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Information Clearinghouse is a public service sponsored by the NIAMS that provides health information and information sources. The clearinghouse provides information on lupus. Fact sheets, additional information, and research updates can also be found on the NIAMS Web site at www.niams.nih.gov. Clinicaltrials.gov The Department of Health and Human Services' National Institutes of Health, through its National Library of Medicine, has developed ClinicalTrials.gov to provide patients, family members, and members of the public current information about clinical research studies. You can search for trials by disease, location, treatment, or by funding organization at the Web site ClinicalTrials.gov. American College of Rheumatology The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) is an organization of doctors and associated health professionals who specialize in arthritis and related diseases of the bones, joints, and muscles. The Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals, a division of ACR, aims to enhance the knowledge and skills of rheumatology health professionals and to promote their involvement in rheumatology research, education, and quality patient care. The association also works to advance and promote basic and continuing education in rheumatology for health professionals who provide care to people with rheumatic diseases. Alliance for Lupus Research, Inc. The Alliance for Lupus Research, Inc. (ALR), is a nonprofit organization devoted exclusively to the support of promising research for the prevention, treatment, and cure of lupus. Through accelerated, focused, goal-oriented research programs, the ALR aims to promote basic and clinical sciences to achieve major advances leading to a better understanding of the causes of lupus. American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association The American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA) is the only national nonprofit voluntary health agency dedicated to bringing a national focus and collaborative effort to the over 100 known autoimmune diseases through education, awareness, research, and patient services. By collaborating with the National Coalition of Autoimmune Patient Groups (NCAPG), AARDA supports legislative advocacy for autoimmune disease patients. AARDA provides free patient education information, physician and agency referrals, forums and symposia, and a quarterly newsletter. Arthritis Foundation The Arthritis Foundation is the major voluntary organization devoted to supporting arthritis research and providing educational and other services to individuals with arthritis. It publishes free pamphlets and a magazine for members on all types of arthritis. It also provides up-to-date information on research and treatment, nutrition, alternative therapies, and self-management strategies for patients with lupus and other autoimmune diseases. Chapters nationwide offer exercise programs, classes, support groups, physician referral services, and free literature. For more information, call your local chapter, listed in the white pages of the phone book, or contact the Arthritis Foundation at the above address. Lupus Clinical Trials Consortium, Inc. (LCTC) The LCTC is a nonprofit organization that encourages the identification and testing of promising new therapies for lupus. It provides infrastructure support grants to certain academic institutions to support their clinical research activities; encourages lupus clinical researchers from those institutions to share their expertise; supports and conducts educational efforts to show the need for lupus clinical research; and disseminates scientific insights to advance the discovery of new lupus therapies. Lupus Foundation of America (LFA), Inc. The LFA assists local chapters in providing services to people with lupus, works to educate the public about lupus, and supports lupus research. Through a network of more than 500 branches and support groups, the chapters provide education through information and referral services, health fairs, newsletters, publications, and seminars. Chapters provide support to people with lupus, their families, and friends through support group meetings, hospital visits, and telephone help lines. Rheuminations, Inc. Rheuminations, Inc. is a private, nonprofit foundation committed to funding excellence in medical research to achieve a better understanding of the causes of lupus and to bring new treatments to market; to educate and to empower those who live with lupus and those who care for them; to establish a higher level of public awareness about the disease. SLE Foundation, Inc. The foundation supports and encourages medical research to find the cause and cure of lupus and improve its diagnosis and treatment. It also provides a wide variety of services to help patients with lupus and their families. In addition, this voluntary organization conducts a broad-based public education program to raise awareness of lupus and increase understanding of this serious, chronic, autoimmune disease. Acknowledgements The NIAMS gratefully acknowledges the assistance of Jill P. Buyon, M.D., Hospital for Joint Diseases, New York, New York; Patricia A. Fraser, M.D., Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts; John H. Klippel, M.D., The Arthritis Foundation, Washington, DC; Michael D. Lockshin, M.D., Barbara Volcker Center for Women and Rheumatic Disease, Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, New York; Rosalind Ramsey-Goldman, M.D., Dr.P.H., Northwestern University Medical School, Chicago, Illinois; George Tsokos, M.D., Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland; and Elizabeth Gretz, Ph.D., Barbara Mittleman, M.D., Susana Serrate-Sztein, M.D., and Peter E. Lipsky, M.D., NIAMS, NIH, in the preparation and review of this and earlier versions of this publication. Special thanks also go to the many patients who reviewed this publication and provided valuable input. An earlier version of this booklet was written by Debbie Novak of Johnson, Bassin, and Shaw, Inc. The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), a part of the Department of Health and Human Services' National Institutes of Health NIH), leads the Federal medical research effort in arthritis and musculoskeletal and skin diseases. The NIAMS supports research and research training throughout the United States, as well as on the NIH campus in Bethesda, MD, and disseminates health and research information. The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Information Clearinghouse is a public service sponsored by the NIAMS that provides health information and information sources. Additional information and research updates can be found on the NIAMS Web site at www.niams.nih.gov. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
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