Respiratory System Involvement in Patients with IgA Deficiency

Selective IgA deficiency (SIgAD), is known as the most common antibody deficiency. This study, investigated the respiratory disorders among these patients.

In this retrospective descriptive study, the data of patients with SIgAD in “Iranian Primary Immunodeficiency Registry” were extracted. Then, demographic characteristics, frequency and type of respiratory disorders, in addition to immunologic findings were gathered and analyzed by SPSS software.

One hundred and twenty three patients with SIgAD (78 males/45 females), with the mean age of 18± 9.6 years old were investigated. Respiratory complications (recurrent cold, chronic cough and pneumonia), were the first presentation in 45% of the patients, and respiratory system involvement was detected among 66 patients (54.1%). The prevalence of pneumonia, otitis media and sinusitis, were 33.3%, 12.5% and 20.7%; respectively; which were significantly reduced after the diagnosis (P<0.05). Bronchiectasis had also been found in five patients (4.1%).

Respiratory problems were shown to be common presenting disorders in SIgAD. Early diagnosis and appropriate therapy could be crucial for better protection, and avoidance of severe respiratory complications in these patients.