Immune System and Disorders

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Summary

Your immune system is a complex network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to defend against germs. It helps your body to recognize these "foreign" invaders. Then its job is to keep them out, or if it can't, to find and destroy them.

If your immune system cannot do its job, the results can be serious. Disorders of the immune system include

Allergy and asthma - immune responses to substances that are usually not harmful
Immune deficiency diseases - disorders in which the immune system is missing one or more of its parts
Autoimmune diseases - diseases causing your immune system to attack your own body's cells and tissues by mistake

NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Start Here

Immune System (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Overview of the Immune System (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

Living With

How to Keep an Infusion Log: Intravenous Immune Globulin (IVIG) (Immune Deficiency Foundation) - PDF

Related Issues

Autoinflammatory Diseases (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)
Flu Vaccine Guidance for Patients with Immune Deficiency (American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology)
IgG Replacement Therapy: When You Need It -- and When You Don't (ABIM Foundation)
Recurrent Infections May Signal Immunodeficiencies (American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology) Also in Spanish
Travelers' Health: Immunocompromised Travelers (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Specifics

Chronic Granulomatous Disease (CGD) (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
Congenital Neutropenia Syndromes (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
DiGeorge Syndrome (DGS) (American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology)
DOCK8 Deficiency (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
General Information about Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis (LCH) (National Cancer Institute)
Glycosylation Disorders with Immunodeficiency (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
GVHD (Graft-Versus-Host Disease): A Guide for Patients and Families After Stem Cell Transplant (National Institutes of Health, Clinical Center) - PDF
Hyper-IgM Syndrome (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
Hyper-Immunoglobulin E Syndrome (HIES) or Job's Syndrome (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency (LAD) (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance (MGUS) (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
PI3 Kinase Disease (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
PLCG2-associatiated antibody deficiency immune dysregulation (PLAID) (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
Selective IgA Deficiency (American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology)
Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
T Cells (National Multiple Sclerosis Society)
Warts, Hypogammaglobulinemia, Infections, and Myelokathexis Syndrome (WHIMS) (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome (National Marrow Donor Program)
Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome (WAS) (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
X-Linked Agammaglobulinemia (XLA) (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
X-Linked Lymphoproliferative Disease (XLP) (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

Genetics

Genetics Home Reference: 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: activated PI3K-delta syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: adenosine deaminase deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: anhidrotic ectodermal dysplasia with immune deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: autosomal dominant hyper-IgE syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: autosomal recessive hyper-IgE syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Chediak-Higashi syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: chronic granulomatous disease (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: common variable immune deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: complement component 2 deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: complement component 8 deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: complement factor I deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Erdheim-Chester disease (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: familial hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Griscelli syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: hepatic veno-occlusive disease with immunodeficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: immune dysregulation, polyendocrinopathy, enteropathy, X-linked syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: IRAK-4 deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Langerhans cell histiocytosis (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: leukocyte adhesion deficiency type 1 (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: mannose-binding lectin deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: multiple sclerosis (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: MyD88 deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: purine nucleoside phosphorylase deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Schimke immuno-osseous dysplasia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: spondyloenchondrodysplasia with immune dysregulation (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: T-cell immunodeficiency, congenital alopecia, and nail dystrophy (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: trichohepatoenteric syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: X-linked agammaglobulinemia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: X-linked hyper IgM syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: X-linked immunodeficiency with magnesium defect, Epstein-Barr virus infection, and neoplasia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: X-linked lymphoproliferative disease (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: ZAP70-related severe combined immunodeficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Learning about Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) (National Human Genome Research Institute)

Health Check Tools

Immune System Quiz (Nemours Foundation)

Videos and Tutorials

Immune response - Encyclopedia Also in Spanish
Phagocytosis - Encyclopedia Also in Spanish

Games

Play the Immune System Defender Game (Nobel Foundation)

Statistics and Research

Early Treatment Benefits Infants with Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
Gene Risk Factors for Age-Related Brain Disorders May Affect Immune System Function (National Institute on Aging)
LAD-1 Peridontitis: Rolling on...and on (National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research)

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Granulomatous Disease, Chronic (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Immune System Diseases (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (National Institutes of Health)

Journal ArticlesReferences and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Reference Desk

Immune System (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Find an Expert

Children

Our Immune System (Immune Deficiency Foundation) - PDF
Repeated Infections in Children (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation)
Weakened Immune Systems (American Academy of Pediatrics)
What Is a Pediatric Allergist / Immunologist? (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Teenagers

Immune System (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Seniors

Immune System: Can Your Immune System Still Defend You As You Age? (National Institute on Aging)

Patient Handouts

Agammaglobulinemia Also in Spanish
Aging changes in immunity Also in Spanish
Chronic granulomatous disease Also in Spanish
Graft-versus-host disease Also in Spanish
Histiocytosis Also in Spanish
Hyperimmunoglobulin E syndrome Also in Spanish
Immune response Also in Spanish
Immunodeficiency disorders Also in Spanish
Selective deficiency of IgA Also in Spanish