What happens if immune system fails




















Afterwards, your immune system remembers the antigen. If it sees the antigen again, it can recognize it. It will quickly send out the right antibodies, so in most cases, you don't get sick. This protection against a certain disease is called immunity. Sometimes a person may have an immune response even though there is no real threat.

This can lead to problems such as allergies , asthma , and autoimmune diseases. If you have an autoimmune disease, your immune system attacks healthy cells in your body by mistake. Other immune system problems happen when your immune system does not work correctly. These problems include immunodeficiency diseases. If you have an immunodeficiency disease, you get sick more often.

Your infections may last longer and can be more serious and harder to treat. They are often genetic disorders. There are other diseases that can affect your immune system. For example, HIV is a virus that harms your immune system by destroying your white blood cells. People with AIDS have badly damaged immune systems. They get an increasing number of severe illnesses. The information on this site should not be used as a substitute for professional medical care or advice.

Contact a health care provider if you have questions about your health. Immune System and Disorders. Resources Find an Expert. What is the immune system?

What are the parts of the immune system? The immune system has many different parts, including Your skin, which can help prevent germs from getting into the body Mucous membranes, which are the moist, inner linings of some organs and body cavities. They make mucus and other substances which can trap and fight germs. Your immune system can also be weakened by smoking, alcohol, and poor nutrition. HIV, which causes AIDS, is an acquired viral infection that destroys important white blood cells and weakens the immune system.

If you are born with certain genes, your immune system may react to substances in the environment that are normally harmless. These substances are called allergens. Having an allergic reaction is the most common example of an overactive immune system. Dust, mold, pollen, and foods are examples of allergens. The response in your lungs can cause coughing, wheezing, and trouble breathing. Asthma can be triggered by common allergens like dust or pollen or by an irritant like tobacco smoke.

Allergic rhinitis. Sneezing, a runny nose, sniffling, and swelling of your nasal passages from indoor allergens like dust and pets or outdoor allergens like pollens or molds. In autoimmune diseases, the body attacks normal, healthy tissues. The cause is unknown. Type 1 diabetes.

The immune system attacks the cells in the pancreas that make insulin. Insulin removes sugar from the blood to use as energy. Rheumatoid arthritis. This type of arthritis causes swelling and deformities of the joints. An auto-antibody called rheumatoid factor is in the blood of some people with rheumatoid arthritis. This disease that attacks body tissues, including the lungs, kidneys, and skin. Many types of auto-antibodies are found in the blood of people with lupus.

No one knows exactly what causes autoimmune diseases, but many factors seem to be involved. At the break of skin and the openings of your mouth and nose, it is the border patrol. If invaders do get inside your body, it sends out lines of defense, whether in the blood, organs, muscles or bones. This internal police force is vital to life, though sometimes it does get overzealous.

When this happens, the immune system can work against us, causing allergic reactions or at its worst, autoimmune disorders, such as lupus and multiple sclerosis. Rheumatologist Leonard Calabrese, DO , answers common questions about what happens when your immune system falters. A: Think of how many times you come into contact with someone who has a cold or the flu. Imagine how often your immune system fights off those germs and keeps you in the pink. But what if, instead, every one of those illnesses gained a foothold in your body?

You might go from one illness to another, without ever recovering in between. Instead of bouncing back within days or a week, you could suffer for several weeks or months. These can include recurrent pneumonia, herpes simplex and tuberculosis among other infections. People who are immunocompromised, such as those with HIV, fall into this last group.

This makes certain types of cancer, such as lymphoma, more likely.



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