My mom has lupus and she has lived with painful joints and restless sleep for as long as I can remember. My sister died from lupus. Mom has had problems with her spleen for awhile. The doctors say it is much bigger then it should be and they keep doing tests but no answers. She finally ended up going to the ER because her coworkers said she looked very pale and she was very warm and could not do her job. She is being admitted into the hospital. I am hoping that this is going to be a good thing because the doctors at the hospital have more resources then her normal doctors. I am trying to be optimistic but, when my sister was admitted to the hospital for complications from pneumonia, she died because of lupus.
They say that my mom has internal bleeding and they cannot figure out where it is coming from or where it is going. They cannot test the spleen because it is so sensative(?? ). I don't know what to think... optimistic that she is in good hands or worried because she has gotten this bad and they still don't seem to know anything?? :confused:

Oh yeah, the doctors in the ER said the problem could be due to cirrhosis of the liver?? My mom cannot drink because of the medication that she takes for lupus. How could she develop cirrhosis of the liver? Could that be caused by the problems with her spleen or could the problems with her spleen be caused by the cirrhosis... HELP

Cirrhosis of the Liver (http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/cirrhosis/)

This site will help you understand the problem. This problem is caused by the lupus. My friend died of lupus as her body kept rejecting everything in it and she died of complications of the lupus. She was 5'1" and well over 250 lbs and could barely breathe when she died.

Please accept my prayers for your mom's recovery.

Sometimes the medications for lupus can cause liver problems or blood / bleeding problems. These include plaquenil, imuran, chronic steroid use, cytoxan.
Other potential causes of liver failure / cirrhosis are mentioned in Twinkie's very good link.
Checking for Hepatitis B and C are simple enough.

Cirrhosis can cause portal hypertension that causes the spleen to enlarge.

Liver failure can cause a lack of/ deficient production of normal clotting factors that can lead to bleeding. In addition, an enlarged spleen cause platelets to be low leading to bleeding risk. Liver failure is also associated with esophageal varices that can bleed.

Soory, I too, wish and pray for your mother's health.

Thank you for your help and comments.

My mom has lupus and she has lived with painful joints and restless sleep for as long as I can remember. My sister died from lupus. Mom has had problems with her spleen for awhile. The doctors say it is much bigger then it should be and they keep doing tests but no answers. She finally ended up going to the ER because her coworkers said she looked very pale and she was very warm and could not do her job. She is being admitted into the hospital. I am hoping that this is going to be a good thing because the doctors at the hospital have more resources then her normal doctors. I am trying to be optimistic but, when my sister was admitted to the hospital for complications from pneumonia, she died because of lupus.
They say that my mom has internal bleeding and they cannot figure out where it is coming from or where it is going. They cannot test the spleen because it is so sensative(????). I don't know what to think......optimistic that she is in good hands or worried because she has gotten this bad and they still don't seem to know anything?????????????????:confused:

Oh yeah, the doctors in the ER said the problem could be due to cirrhosis of the liver???????? my mom cannot drink because of the medication that she takes for lupus. how could she develop cirrhosis of the liver? could that be caused by the problems with her spleen or could the problems with her spleen be caused by the cirrhosis.......HELP

The liver problems may be a result of the meds she is on. I have lupus and liver problems as well. I hope your mom is okay

Hello everyone,

I want to thank you for your comments and prayers. It was so long ago that this whole thing happened that I almost forgot that I wrote about it.
Well, for an update on my mom:

She is doing much better. The doctors did tons of tests on her. It turns out that there is nothing wrong with her liver (amazingly) so they decided to take out her spleen. They say she will feel like a whole new person, once she recovers from the surgery and her organs figure out where they are supposed to be.

She has lost so much weight because she just couldn't eat, her spleen was the size of 2 footballs! :o So, she is currently recovering from her surgery and getting better everyday.

Thank you, again to those of you who prayed for my mother.

Hey, I have a very good friend who has an enlarged liver and spleen. Doctors have done many tests but do not know what is wrong. She gets really bad headaches and stomach aches. Do you think this could be because of lupus?

I HAD ITP as a kid and it cause bleeding they removed my spleen and my liver got bigger now they say I have a fatty liver and lupus can there be a connection between all these organ and deases?