I have had an elevated temp between 99.5 and 103.8 since january of 2020. doctors have put me through so many tests, but can't find what's wrong. i have discoid lupus and osteoarthritis. could either of them be causing it?

Yes depending on how active lupus is. Osteo not likely. Do you have a high quality oral/rectal thermometer you are using. Do not trust the ones that use the skin. If you can still buy mercury in PA get one of them of see if friends neighbors have an old one you can sterilize and then check its accuracy then use that one. One of the best ways to get an accurate body temp is to do urine temp.

This truly qualifies as a fever of unknown origin and before attributing it to lupus I believe you should be hospitalized for several days by a specialist in infectious disease for a thorough workup. Other specialists such as a hematologist oncologist,rheumatologist may be called in to check for blood dyscrasias or malignancy as well as infectious diseases.Osteoarthritis is not a cause of fevers.