LUPUS (Lat. lupus, wolf)

This article appears in Volume V17, Page 127 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: LUP-MAL

LUPUS (Lat. lupus, wolf) , a disease characterized by the formation in the skin or mucous membrane of small tubercles or nodules consisting of cell growth which has an inclination to

retrograde

RETROGRADE (from the Lat. retro, backwards, gradiri, to go)

change

CHANGE (derived through the Fr. from the Late Lat. cambium, cambiare, to barter; the ultimate derivation is probably from the root which appears in the Gr. 冠 urmu', to bend)

, leading to ulceration and destruction of the tissues, and, if it heals, to the subsequent formation of permanent white scars. Lupus vulgaris is most commonly seen in early life, and occurs chiefly on the face, about the nose, cheeks or ears. But it may also affect the

body

BODY

or limbs. It first shows itself as small, slightly prominent, nodules covered with thin crusts or scabs. These may be absorbed and removed at one point whilst spreading at another. Their disappearance is followed by a permanent white cicatrix. The disease may be superficial, in which case both the ulceration and the resulting scar are slight (lupus non-exedens); or the ulcerative process may be deep and extensive, destroying a large portion of the nose or cheek, and leaving much disfigurement (lupus exedens). A milder form, lupus erythematosus, occurs on the nose and adjacent portions of the cheeks in the form of red patches covered with thin scales, underneath which are seen the widened openings of the sebaceous ducts. With a longitudinal patch on the nose and spreading symmetrical patches on each cheek the appearance is usually that of a large butterfly. It is slow in disappearing, but does not leave a scar. Lupus is more frequently seen in women than in men; it is connected with a tuberculous constitution. In the superficial variety the applica-tion of soothing ointments when there is much redness, and linear incisions, or scrapings with a

sharp

spoon, to destroy the increased blood

supply

SUPPLY (through Fr. from Lat. supplere, to fill up)

, are often serviceable. In the

ordinary

ORDINARY (med. Lat. ordinarius, Fr. ordinaire)

form the local treatment is to remove the new

tissue

TISSUE (Fr. tissu, tissue, participle of tisser, Lat. texere, to weave)

growth by solid points of caustic thrust into the tubercles to break them up, or by scraping with a

sharp

spoon. The light-treatment has been successfully applied in

recent

RECENT

years. As medicines, cod-

liver

LIVER (O. Eng. lifer; cf. cognate forms, Dutch lever, Ger. Leber, Swed. lefver, &c.; the O. H. Ger. forms are libara, lipora, &c.; the Teut. word has been connected with Gr. i'prap and Lat. jecur)

oil, iron and arsenic are useful. (E. O.*)

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