Immunosuppression

Immunosuppression General Information

Immunosuppression is a therapeutic approach which is employed in special clinical cases in which the patient’s immune system’s actions need to be suppressed / reduced. In normal cases, the body’s immune system is responsible for the protection of the organism against certain antigens (e.g. toxins, viruses, bacteria, fungi, cancer cells as well as tissue or blood from another person). The immune system reacts to the presence of such invasive agents by producing certain cells – antigens – that seek out and destroy the antigens. The defense system also relies on phagocytosis – a process in which the foreign agents are swallowed and destroyed by special white blood cells.

Immunosuppression is achieved through special mechanisms that affect the patients’ B or T lymphocytes or through mechanisms that modify the patient’s organism’s ability of producing antibodies. Such a medical condition can be induced by intensive therapy courses with drugs affecting the patients’ immune system, such as those that belong to the corticosteroid class medications, and may also occur as a side effect of chemotherapy. It may also be induced through other medical procedures, such as splenectomy or plasmapharesis. Typically, the Immunosuppression is employed in order to treat certain auto-immune diseases (e.g. Crohn’s disease or rheumatoid arthritis),  to prevent transplant rejection or to treat a condition known as the “graft versus host disease” that may appear in patients that have undergone bone marrow transplant. Currently, this condition is induced in most cases through the use of drugs, as opposed to past procedures which were relying on radiation therapy to suppress the immune system reaction.

Immunosuppression Symptoms

Characteristics for immuno-compromised patients is the lack of reaction from the immune system to foreign substances that permeate into the organism. There are a number of general symptoms or better said effects that arise in the case of most patients who undergo this type of medical therapy, such as an increased risk of infections, even with antigens that are normally harmless to the organism – as such it is strongly recommended that patients with a weakened immune system do not come in contact with people that carry any form of contagious disorder or infection, or with individuals that have received a live vaccine within the past 2 weeks. Patients who have undergone Immunosuppression should be kept in strictly controlled environments in order to protect them from any foreign harmful substances that may attack their organism.

In the case of organ transplants, it is very common that the receiver’s immune system recognizes the transplanted tissues as foreign pathogens, therefore attacking them; if left uncontrolled, this reaction leads to the destruction of the organ and in such cases it is likely that the patient will die as well. However, Immunosuppression serves to counter the immune system’s reaction thus acting as a prophylactic measure for organ transplant. Delayed or incomplete response to therapy, long recovery periods after illness and the recurrence of medical affections may also be signs of a compromised immune system. The immuno-compromised patient may develop certain types of infectious diseases or cancer which may help diagnose the condition.

When the patient’s personal health care provider decides that the individual should undergo an Immunosuppression therapy course he or she will have to familiarize the patient with the most common immuno-suppressive agents which can be employed for this medical purpose. In other words, the medical professional will discuss with his or her patient the advantages and disadvantages that each therapy option (each different immuno-suppressive clinical remedy) is expected to yield. The medicine of choice will be determined according to the medical provider’s professional expertise, to the patient’s preferences, and so on. When your main health care prescriber indicates you the medication that you are to use during your therapy course, he or she will also tell you how you are expected to employ your prescribed doses of that product in order to be granted all the beneficial results of such a therapy course. You should carefully listen to your provider’s instructions and make sure that you do not disobey any of them during your treatment trial (employ extra care not to disobey your personalized dosing instructions – missed doses of your Immunosuppression agent, the use of extra doses of that clinical remedy or the use of the incorrect dose of the immuno-suppressive medication will delay or diminish the expected results of your therapy).

Immunosuppression Treatment

In this chapter we will try to present you the most important classes of Immunosuppression agents which can be employed during such a therapy trial. If you are interested in finding out more about such medical products, the way in which they work, their main ingredients, or any other similar aspects, you should refer to your medical practitioner or to your local pharmacist. The first immunosuppressant that was identified was Cortisone. However, this medical product had a varied range of unpleasant adverse manifestations, which eventually limited its use. A more specific immunosuppressant remedy was identified later – Azathioprine, but in 1970 Cyclosporine was discovered – this medical product was the drug that opened new horizons in the study and practice of organ transplants.

Pharmacists commonly classify most Immunosuppression agents into 5 large groups: glucocorticoids, antibodies, cytostatics, drugs that act on immunophilins, other medicines. The most common adverse clinical manifestations that can be associated with the patient’s regular use of such medical products include: development of infectious disorders along with malignant cells’ spread throughout the patient’s organism, kidney injury, liver injury, peptic ulcers, hyperglycemia, dylipidemia, hypertension, and so on. Clinical studies have also shown that the use of such medical products can interact with other common therapy courses, affecting the action and metabolism of certain clinical remedies. For this reason, we strongly recommend all individuals to discuss with their main health care provider and ask him or her if they may start using another type of medical product during their therapy course with an immunosuppressive medication. In case you miss one of your prescribed doses of a certain immunosuppressive clinical product, refer to your medical provider and ask him or her what you should do in order to minimize the negative effects that this will have on your therapy results.