Symptoms of Selective IgA Deficiency
General information about symptoms of Selective IgA Deficiency: The symptom information on this page attempts to provide a list of some possible symptoms of Selective IgA Deficiency. This symptom information has been gathered from various sources, may not be fully accurate, and may not be the full list of symptoms of Selective IgA Deficiency. Furthermore, symptoms of Selective IgA Deficiency may vary on an individual basis for each patient. Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of symptoms and whether they are indeed symptoms of Selective IgA Deficiency.
List of symptoms of Selective IgA Deficiency: The list of symptoms mentioned in various sources for Selective IgA Deficiency includes:
- No symptoms - many people do not have noticable problems with infections
- Recurring infections
- Recurring ear infections
- Recurring sinus infections
- Recurring lung infections
- Poor response to standard antibiotics
Symptoms of Selective IgA Deficiency:
Many IgA-deficient patients are
healthy, with no more than the usual number of infections. Those
patients who do have symptoms typically have recurring ear, sinus,
or lung infections that may not respond to standard courses of
antibiotics. People with IgA-deficiency are likely to have other
problems, including allergies, asthma, chronic diarrhea, and
autoimmune diseases.
How is IgA deficiency
diagnosed?
People with IgA deficiency have low
levels of IgA antibodies in their blood. In contrast, their levels
of IgM and IgG immunoglobulins usually are normal. IgA-deficient
people also have normal levels of other immune system cells,
including T cells, phagocytes, and complement proteins.
Doctors diagnose IgA deficiency by doing tests to measure
the amount of total immunoglobulin in the blood as well as the type
of immunoglobulin known as IgG2. Other tests determine how well a
person is producing antibodies against specific germs following
immunization with a common vaccine, such as a tetanus
shot.
What causes IgA
deficiency?
IgA deficiency is caused by faulty
white blood cells called B cells or B lymphocytes. While patients
have normal numbers of B cells, these cells do not mature into
normal IgA-producing cells. Scientists do not yet know the exact
cause or causes for these immature B cells. Sometimes clusters of
cases occur in families, and IgA-deficient patients are more likely
than the general population to be related to someone with combined
variable immunodeficiency, another form of immunodeficiency
discussed below. Research is underway to determine the location of
the suspected genes on the involved chromosomes.
How is IgA deficiency
treated?
There is no specific treatment for
selective IgA deficiency. Doctors treat bacterial infections with
antibiotics, and patients with giardiasis (an infection caused by a
common intestinal parasite receive metronidazole or quinacrine
hydrochloride.
1
More symptoms of Selective IgA Deficiency: In addition to the above information, to get a full picture of the possible symptoms of this condition and its related conditions, it may be necessary to examine symptoms that may be caused by complications of Selective IgA Deficiency, underlying causes of Selective IgA Deficiency, associated conditions for Selective IgA Deficiency, risk factors for Selective IgA Deficiency, or other related conditions.
Medical articles on symptoms: These general reference articles may be of interest:
Footnotes:
1. excerpt from Primary Immune Deficiency, NIAID Fact Sheet: NIAID
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