Gavin had his 12th antibody infusion this afternoon. It’s hard to believe that it has already been any earlier since we discovered that he has primary immunodeficiency. I remember hearing that and being completely shocked at the news.
How was this even possible?
Gavin’s never been hospitalized for a serious illness. How could he have made it 11 years without an immune system? While we haven’t found that answer just yet, we’ve just chalked it up to God was looking out for Gavin.
Gavin has to receive IVIG, once a month, every month, for the rest of his life. IVIG is basically, an immune system in a bag. It consists of antibodies that have been donated by other people. They are the specific type that Gavin is missing, which happens to be IgG and IgM. His body then uses these donated antibodies to fight off infection.
Gavin had his 12th infusion of these donated antibodies this afternoon.
He once again did very well and his body is tolerating the foreign antibodies once again.
Unfortunately, as I mentioned previously, Gavin will need this treatment for the rest of his life. Even if he were to produce more antibodies on his own, they are defective.
Some kids only need the infusions for a short while. Gavin isn’t one of those kids.
Thankfully, the treatments have been working and he isn’t really getting sick. Hopefully, this trend continues long into the future.
If you have any questions regarding this disorder, please feel free to send me a message or leave a comment below. 🙂
< em>**Thanks for reading**
-Lost and Tired
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Where do they get donor antibodies? Is it like donating blood? Does Gavin need donors?
You know, I don\’t know exactly how they get them. Gavin doesn\’t need donors but thank you 🙂 I don\’t think the antibodies are type specific. It\’s not like donating blood for a transfusion or having to match tissue type for a transplant.
However, now I\’m curious and will have to ask the next time I\’m there. 🙂