IgG2 defiency and H1N1 severity

Nurses COVID

Published

Specializes in Critical care, trauma, cardiac, neuro.

Has anybody else heard about the correlations between IgG2 deficiency and H1N1 severity?

Some of our docs have been testing our severely ill H1N1 patients for months (and I have seen IgG 2 results as 30% of normal in the ones in ICU) and now there have been articles in the press with other facilities observing this. In time, if it is real it will make the journals. Until then, we'll have to rely on anecdotal "evidence."

Anyone else?

Yes this was in the news and indigogirl posted it

https://allnurses.com/pandemic-flu-forum/decrease-key-antibodies-424263.html

I guess this is the reason the bloodbank is strongly encouraging volunteers to donate.

Specializes in Too many to list.

Thanks for finding that link, dishes. I was trying to remember where it went...

are they being treated with IVIG?

are they being treated with IVIG?[/quote

I believe some doctors are planning to treat this way, because the article says "Three of four critically ill patients treated with immune globulin survived, defying predictions of those caring for them."..... "he does think the notion of treating pandemic flu patients with antibodies harvested from other people makes sense, though he believes the immune globulin should be from people who've recovered from swine flu and have antibodies specific to the virus"

In addition after this news was published, I received a call from the bloodbank requesting blood to help treat people with H1N1 and was told it would be even better if I already had antibodies to H1n1.

regards

dishes

Just to clarify the bloodbank was originally phoning to encourage donors to come out because of concerns that the H1N1 pandemic could mean a drop in donors and a drop in staff available to draw blood. It then turned in to a discussion about the possibility of immune globulin treatment and how having antibodies would be beneficial.

dishes

Specializes in Too many to list.

http://afludiary.blogspot.com/2010/02/igg2-and-flu.html

i was very excited to read about this today, and remembered that we had a thread started already on this very interesting phenomenon. i will be looking forward to this reseach study being published online, and any commentary explaining it further.

"it's very unusual for us to see a 22-year-old about to die with (ordinary seasonal) influenza.

"our thought is there is something special about swine flu and its interaction with immunoglobulin."

prof grayson found those swine flu patients who become the sickest were likely to have a pre-existing deficiency of a specific blood protein (immunoglobulin g2 or igg2) that is crucial to the proper functioning of the immune system.

Specializes in Too many to list.

australia: 'eureka moment' may unlock swine flu mystery

http://crofsblogs.typepad.com/h5n1/2010/02/australia-eureka-moment-may-unlock-swine-flu-mystery.html

i think that this is really important information.

thanks to the commenter who sent the link to this fascinating report from the age: 'eureka moment' may unlock swine flu mystery. it describes the insight of dr. clare martin in dealing with a very ill pregnant patient:

after consulting colleagues, she ordered an expensive and rarely used test of the patient's immunoglobulin sub-types. these are ''spotter'' proteins that tag invaders for the immune system to hunt and destroy. to her surprise, the patient had extremely low levels of one particular sub-class, called igg2.

she ordered tests for other hospital patients with swine flu and the pattern was confirmed: the sicker they were, the lower their igg2 levels.

when injected with the protein, the patients began to get better almost immediately - including the young mother.

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