If a doctor thinks someone has lupus, he or she may send
the person to a pediatric rheumatologist  [say: roo-muh-tol-oh-jist].
Rheumatoligists are doctors who have special training in diagnosing and treating autoimmune diseases in children.
[Autoimmune diseases are sometimes referred to as rheumatic diseases,
which is where “rheumatologist” comes from.
A rheumatologist will talk to the child and his or her parents and look for any symptoms of lupus.
Here are some common symptoms of lupus:

• •fever
• •weight loss
• •rash
• •loss of appetite
• •painful joints
• •muscle aches
• •swollen glands
• •hair loss
• •abdominal pain
• •nausea
• •diarrhea
• •vomiting
• •sensitivity to the sun
• •mouth sores

The doctor will also run some test on the child’s blood to look for
certain antibodies and other things that may be signs of lupus.