Guest guest Posted November 10, 2005 Report Share Posted November 10, 2005 CW, My son (who has been a patient of Dr. G for almost 4 years now) has NEVER shown high viral titers, but there can be other indicators of viral involvement aside from the titers. One is a low WBC count (and that can just mean consistently at the low end of the normal range... it doesn't have to be off-the-charts low). Another is a high monocyte count. Another is motor issues. My son was hypotonic (low muscle tone) when starting with Dr. Goldberg. Within months of starting Valtrex, his muscle tone normalized. He also developed normal reflexes where he had had NONE. I remember a local Dr. who had followed him for the motor issues being blown away by this. She said " THIS JUST DOESN'T HAPPEN! " . She was very impressed. And just in case that was a fluke, when my younger son had basically the same thing happen when he started antiviral, that proved our case. I certainly would think your daughter could be a " " case, especially since she has other immune abnormalities. Caroline On 11/9/05 7:04 PM, " carol wright " <butterflycw@...> wrote: > I have a question about immune deficiency. I can't determine if our > child actually fits into this category. She does not have any high > viral titers to CMV, herpes, EBV, rubeola, strep, etc. However, she > has almost non-existant NK cells and has low secretory IgA and high > IgE. This is somewhat confusing because part of her profile says that > she does not fit the immune deficiency, and the other part says yes. > Can anyone help me with this> I would really appreciate your response. > God bless, > CW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 9, 2008 Report Share Posted March 9, 2008 So sorry your son has had such a tough time. His history sounds typical of someone with an immune disorder. I would expect the immunologist to do additional blood work, looking to confirm the previous findings and checking various types of cells that are involved in immune responses. He may give pneumococcal and H. influenza immunizations (even though your son would have had those in infancy) to check the antibodies to those bacteria before and several weeks after the injections, looking to see if your son produces the antibodies after exposure to the vaccines, which he should. It is completely safe to receive these vaccines even though he has already been fully immunized. He will also probably give him a skin test for yeast, to test a different part of the immune system. IVIG (intravenous IgG)treatment may be recommended if the antibody tests show either low levels of IgG (a specific class of antibody in the same way that IgE is a specific class) or IgG subclasses (=different types), or poor function of the IgG part of the immune system in responding to important bacteria like H. influenza and pneumococcus, even if blood levels are normal. IVIG itself consists of antibodies purified from donated human blood. It is a very safe preparation that has been in use for many years. It's often given monthly, more or less depending on the individual patient. There is now a similar preparation available that can be given by injection just under the skin instead of intravenously, which is much less cumbersome and much less expensive than IVIG treatment. Either treatment should be covered by insurance. I hope the immunologist can determine what is causing your son's problems and then treat him successfully. Is the immunologist out in the community or on the faculty of a medical school? Please keep me posted and feel free to email, since this is not Xolair-related. Fran --- In , " " <shuttsgirl@...> wrote: > > > Fran, > > You've posted before about being diagnosed with an immune problem that > required IVIG. I have a question for you. My 9 year old asthmatic son > has had frequent sinus infections for the last 11/2 years that flare his > asthma badly leading to evil candy (9yr old+evil candy=frazzled mommy!). > His asthma doctor did some lab that showed he had no antibodies to > pnuemococcus or H influenze bacteria. He referred us to a pediatric > immunologist today that we will see in 2 weeks to see if there is some > kind of immune problem. He mentioned something about IVIG if that > turned out to be the cause of all the infections. > > What will the immunologist be looking for? I assume some kind of labs? > I want to be prepared before we go for what to expect. We've got to get > some kind of control over these infections because that seems to be what > triggers his really bad asthma episodes. Allergy testing was negative > and Sinus surgery in November to improve drainage has not helped. I > don't know very much about immunology other than IgE testing for the > Xolair and would appreciate any comments you might have. > > Thanks, > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 10, 2008 Report Share Posted March 10, 2008 Thank you so much for your comments-that was extremely helpful and what I needed to know. The immunologist is affiliated with the large children's hospital in our area. It is a teaching site for the area medical schools, so I'm hoping they are familiar with complex problems. I will let you know privately how it all turns out. Thanks very much, > > > > > > Fran, > > > > You've posted before about being diagnosed with an immune problem > that > > required IVIG. I have a question for you. My 9 year old asthmatic > son > > has had frequent sinus infections for the last 11/2 years that > flare his > > asthma badly leading to evil candy (9yr old+evil candy=frazzled > mommy!). > > His asthma doctor did some lab that showed he had no antibodies to > > pnuemococcus or H influenze bacteria. He referred us to a pediatric > > immunologist today that we will see in 2 weeks to see if there is > some > > kind of immune problem. He mentioned something about IVIG if that > > turned out to be the cause of all the infections. > > > > What will the immunologist be looking for? I assume some kind of > labs? > > I want to be prepared before we go for what to expect. We've got > to get > > some kind of control over these infections because that seems to be > what > > triggers his really bad asthma episodes. Allergy testing was > negative > > and Sinus surgery in November to improve drainage has not helped. I > > don't know very much about immunology other than IgE testing for the > > Xolair and would appreciate any comments you might have. > > > > Thanks, > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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