Feature Review:

Update on Immunodeficiency

Allergies and Primary Immunodeficiency are often confused, because the symptoms of respiratory allergies to say house dust mites or pets, can be very similar to recurrent respiratory infections, but also because the two diseases can co-exist. Also patients with allergic rhinitis from any cause often develop Chronic sinusitis, which can be very difficult to diagnose, if it is not suspected. It is not uncommon to focus on the known disease and try to attribute all the symptoms to it, and ignore the possibility of another co-existing disease. Therefore, any allergic patient that is affected by two or more of 10 Warning Signs of Primary Immunodeficiency (Jeffry Modell Foundation) should have this condition excluded by their physician. Also because allergies are so common in the community, people with known (diagnosed) Primary Immunodefeciency should consider allergies as a co-existing disease.

The Jeffrey Modell Foundation's 10 Warning sign of primary Immunodeficiency, is a very simple but very useful reminder of the diagnosis of Primary Immunodeficiency ( genetic disease characterized by recurrent infections, which can be disabling or chronic).

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