Description
Antibody deficiency is the commonest clinically significant immune defect seen by Immunologists. Furthermore, treatment is relatively straightforward compared to the rarer deficiencies in T cells, complement and phagocyte function. The diagnosis of severe hypo-immunoglobulinaemia is simple, but there is still no clear consensus on the best tests for the more subtle defects in antibody production. This is partly because of difficulty in interpreting specific antibody levels and responses to immunisation, particularly in children, and partly because of uncertainty about the clinical relevance of IgG subclass deficiency, given that there is so much redundancy in host defence mechanisms.
