Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (Noun)
Meaning
A congenital disease affecting T cells that can result from a mutation in any one of several different genes; children with it are susceptible to infectious disease; if untreated it is lethal within the first year or two of life.
Classification
Nouns denoting natural processes.
Examples
- Severe combined immunodeficiency is a congenital disease that occurs when there is a mutation in one or more of the genes that regulate the development and function of T cells.
- The symptoms of severe combined immunodeficiency can vary widely, but typically include recurring and persistent infections, failure to thrive, and physical growth delay.
- Children with severe combined immunodeficiency are not able to fight off even the simplest infections, and often require expensive and prolonged courses of treatment.
- If left untreated, severe combined immunodeficiency is uniformly fatal within the first two years of life, making prompt and accurate diagnosis critical.
- Severe combined immunodeficiency is often referred to as the "boy in the bubble" disease, due to the need for children with the condition to be isolated from the outside world to protect them from infections.