Comparison of the frequency of atopic diseases in children with severe and partial IgA deficiency.
Similar frequencies of atopic diseases and of elevated total serum IgE levels were observed in 40 children with serum IgA levels below 5 mg/dl and absence of salivary IgA (severe selective IgA deficiency, SIgAD) and in 40 children with serum IgA levels above 5 mg/dl but below -2 SD of age-normal mean values and presence of salivary IgA (partial SIgAD). These findings suggest that the absence of secretory IgA, which has been postulated to play a protective role by excluding allergens at the mucosal level, does not appear to play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of atopic diseases.
D000361:Agammaglobulinemia / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006801:Humans; D006969:Hypersensitivity, Immediate / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D017098:IgA Deficiency; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000032:analysis; D007558:Italy
D007073:Immunoglobulin E