Dorothy FarrarImmunodeficiency
Physicians use the terms immune deficiency , immunodeficiency or immunodeficiency synonymously to describe a general disease of the immune system. A disease of the immune system manifests itself in that a person is susceptible to infectious diseases or the actually harmless infections take an unnaturally severe course.
What is an immune deficiency?
In the strict medical sense, an immune deficiency is not a disease; rather, the term is used when a patient has a strikingly strong tendency to contract infections or when harmless infections take an unusually bad course. An immune deficiency is characterized by the body not developing enough defenses to protect itself adequately against invading pathogens.
This condition can be temporary or permanent and irreversible. An immune deficiency is divided into a cellular and a humoral immune deficiency. In the case of a cellular immune deficiency, the immune cells themselves are affected , in the case of a humoral immune deficiency, the antibodies . Often there is a combination of both; the doctor then speaks of a combined immune deficiency.
An immune deficiency can exist since birth, be acquired or be medically desired. If an immune deficiency is already present from birth, it is referred to as a primary immune deficiency, in all other cases the doctor speaks of an acquired immune deficiency. The best- known acquired immune deficiency is an infection with the AIDS pathogen HIV .
causes
The causes of an immune deficiency can be congenital or acquired. The exact gene location for a primary immune defect has already been identified in the course of numerous research projects. Acquired immune deficiency is far more common. The most well-known acquired immune deficiency is an infection with the HI virus, which triggers the immune deficiency disease AIDS.Other causes of acquired immune deficiency are diseases of the bone marrow. If there is a bone marrow disease, blood formation is usually disturbed – for example in the case of leukemia or neutropenia – which subsequently leads to a weakening of the immune system (immune deficiency).
As part of some extensive medical therapies, the body’s own immune system must be suppressed, for example to avoid rejection of the new organ after an organ transplant. In cancer therapy, switching off the immune system is sometimes essential for the success of the therapy. In both cases, the doctor speaks of an iatrogenic immune deficiency.
symptoms and course
Typical symptoms of immune deficiency:
The symptoms of an immune deficiency are diffuse and are initially expressed in the fact that a patient suffers from an infection more often than usual. Actually harmless infections – eg a cold with a cough – grow into serious illnesses, such as bronchitis or even pneumonia.
Even when there is no infection – which can still be relatively long in the early stages of an immune deficiency – the patient feels bad and burned out. In the later course, the symptom-free phases become shorter and shorter, the patient practically always suffers from the symptoms typical of infections such as sore throat and earache, runny nose, cough or diarrhea.
Medicines have little or no effect. Patients whose immune system has been completely switched off must be consistently protected against infections of all kinds, for example by wearing sterile clothing, since even harmless infections can be fatal.
Diagnose
After a comprehensive anamnesis and the collection and evaluation of patient data, a doctor will develop an initial suspicion of an immune deficiency. To confirm his suspicions, he will suggest a blood test.
Blood is taken from the patient and then examined in a laboratory. If an unborn child is suspected of developing a genetic immune defect due to a family history, an amniotic fluid test can also be used to look for it.
complications
An immune deficiency can lead to various complications. In some cases, these can even be life-threatening. One of the fatal effects of an immune deficiency or immune deficiency is the susceptibility to infections, which usually occur repeatedly. In contrast to the body of healthy people, the body of a person suffering from an immune deficiency is not able to adequately defend itself against an infection. Because of this, the patient is more likely to suffer from inflammation or infection. These can be caused by both viruses and bacteria.
The most dangerous consequences of immunodeficiency are generalized infections that cause a life-threatening course of the disease. The best-known immunodeficiency disease is AIDS (HIV). With this condition, the mucous membranes of those affected are often attacked by the fungus Candida. In addition, warts, lymphomas, pneumonia and malignant tumors are common. In extreme cases, the immune deficiency leads to a fatal infection of the patient.
It is not uncommon for the constant physical illnesses caused by the immune deficiency to have negative effects on the psyche and mental life of the people affected. They often show reduced self-esteem, which further restricts their quality of life. In addition, there is a risk of reduced life expectancy. In order to counteract the serious complications of immune deficiency, patients are given special medication and antibodies throughout their lives. Antibiotics are used against existing bacterial infections.
treatment and therapy
There are a number of therapies available to treat an immune deficiency. First, it is important to protect people with an immune deficiency against opportunistic pathogens. Opportunistic pathogens are those pathogens that people come into contact with on a daily basis and that do not cause disease in a healthy body.
The patient is therefore given concomitant antibacterial and antifungal medication. In addition, a healthy immune system can be transferred to the patient using stem cell therapy. Furthermore, if there is a lack of antibodies, antibodies obtained from foreign blood can be given to the patient.
prevention
A newborn cannot be protected from a genetically caused and congenital immune deficiency. The patient cannot counteract the development of an immune deficiency due to a disease of the bone marrow (eg leukemia) prophylactically.
However, there are a number of ways to protect yourself from an acquired immune deficiency. This includes avoiding risky situations that are still considered significant for infection with the HI virus (unprotected sexual intercourse, use of contaminated syringes).
Eating a healthy diet , getting enough exercise, avoiding stress , and avoiding alcohol and nicotine are also helpful in keeping the body healthy and protecting against immune deficiency.
Hello and welcome to my Health Guide & Encyclopedia! My name is Dorothy Farrar, and I'm the founder and main author of this platform.
My passion for health and wellness started at a young age when I became interested in the connection between the food we eat and the way we feel. This fascination led me to study nutrition and dietetics in college, where I learned about the importance of a balanced diet and the impact of various nutrients on the body.