The immune system is a structure whose main function is to protect the organism against damage that may come from outside, such as infections , viruses or bacteria. It is a system made up of organs, tissues and cells that act together in the face of any threat launched by an immune response.
However, there may be different situations in which the immune system fails in. This is due to different internal or external factors that can affect its correct functioning.
It is practically perfect machinery, which has the ability to establish memory against certain viruses or infections to know how react in future situations. However, any defense has its weak points, which also occurs in the immune system something.
Diseases due to malfunction of the immune system
The immune system has a very marked mechanism of action. That is to say, it protects the organism through the identification of the elimination of pathogens and, by knowing the tissue cells that are really part of the individual and. All that is poses a strange health threat.
However, the immune system is not perfect and can sometimes fail due to different circumstances. That is why colds, infections, virus infections and even diseases of different severity arise.
When the immune system fails, we differentiate between three different types of alterations of this structure. First, an inadequate or non-existent response to an external agent due to immunodeficiencies caused by an intrinsic defect in the cells of the system.
The second alteration is one in which the external agent is capable of generating damage to the body, such as immunosuppressive treatments, chemotherapy, malnutrition or viruses of different kinds.
In this second type of immune alteration, an incorrect response is produced by the system, in the which mistakenly attacks the healthy organ tissues and organs. In this sense, we have autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis or lupus.
Thus, thirdly, we have an excessive response to the exposure of antigens from the environment. This is a situation that usually occurs in the case of allergies.
How to recognize a disease of the immune system
Regarding autoimmune pathologies, all of them offer the same pattern of characterization. Specifically, several organs are affected, with skin and joint lesions, fever or fatigue. In addition, they bear similarities in their diagnostic complexity and their chronic character.
Some of the most frequent allergic reactions are conjunctivitis, rhinitis, asthma, food allergy, urticaria and even a generalized anaphylactic reaction .
In recent years, medical specialists have emphasized the importance of obtaining an early diagnosis of autoimmune diseases.
Thus, the doctor Ainhoa Anuzita Alegra, internal medicine specialist at IMQ in, explains that in all autoimmune diseases, the prognosis depends on the type of disease and the early diagnosis that allows, quickly, the administration of the appropriate treatment, thus avoiding, many cases in, damages irreversible.
In any case, the immune system is one of the most complex and essential structures of the body, so each person must also lead positive life habits in order to function. These actions include a healthy balanced diet and physical exercise, adequate rest or avoiding stress.