Allergy and Clinical Immunology

Neonatal and Pediatric Immunology

The immune system is not fully grown at birth and therefore we are at an high risk of infection. At the same time, the act of being born – moving from the protected environment of the womb to the wider world, exposes us to a wide range of pathogens that we never encountered and have no immunity to  protection against. To supplement this period of immune immaturity and to make lower risk of infection, the mother transfers passive protection to the child, mainly in the form of antibody. The immune react in early stage is decreases when compared to adults. The diminishing in immune response leads to increased susceptibility to pathogens and to decreased responses to vaccines which are effective in adults. In paediatric immunology child’s immune system impairment, that leads to allergies, autoimmune disorders, primary immune deficiency diseases and acquired deficiency illness.

The causes for immune system malfunctions are:

• Acquired immune deficiency
• Autoimmune disorder
• Over-active immune system
• Primary immune deficiency