603 Infections in Patients Diagnosed with Common Variable Immunodeficiency

BACKGROUND: Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is the most frequent clinically manifested primary immunodeficiency. It is characterized by recurrent infections due to defective immunoglobulin production. We aimed to evaluate the infectious diseases of 7 patients as premising symptoms for diagnosis of CVID. METHODS: All patients had a marked decrease in IgG levels (at least 2 SD below the mean values for their age), a marked decrease in at least one of the isotypes of IgM or IgA, a diagnosis of immunodeficiency at age >2 years, and no other cause of hypogammaglobulinemia.1 RESULTS: Seven patients who were diagnosed with CVID are investigated for immunodeficiency reasons based on their recurrent infections. Diagnosis of CVID was made at a median patient age of 28 years (range: 16–72 years); of the patients, 6 (86%) were male. All patients were presented with recurrent upper respiratory tract infections (URTI). Additionally, infected bronchiectasis and chronic diarrhea were noted respectively in 3 patients (42.9%), and 2 patients (28.6%); 1 patient (12.3%) had pericarditis. None of them had malignancy. CONCLUSIONS: URTI, pneumonia, and diarrhea are the most frequent initial complications of CVID. CVID often remains misdiagnosed for several years. Unusual length, recurrence, or severity of these infections or pneumonia should suggest the possibility of immunodeficiency and justify appropriate evaluation.