Is Immunocompromised the Same as Immunosuppressed? (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between being immunosuppressed and immunocompromised? ›

You can become immunocompromised in one of these two ways: Immunosuppression is when your immune system is weakened with medications, like after an organ transplant. Immunodeficiency is when your body can't make enough of certain blood cells to defend itself against infection.

Inherited combined immunodeficiency affects both T cells and B cells. It may be deadly within the first year of life if it isn't treated early. People are said to be immunosuppressed when they have an immunodeficiency disorder due to medicines that weaken the immune system.

A few examples: immunocompromised, immunosuppressed, primary immunodeficiency, secondary (or acquired) immunodeficiency, inborn errors of immunity.

Your immune system protects you from intruders like bacteria, viruses or cancer. If you're taking immunosuppressants, it means your immune system won't work as well as it should to get rid of harmful invaders. Your provider may call this being immunocompromised.

People who are immunosuppressed have a reduced ability to fight infections and other diseases. This may be caused by certain diseases or conditions, such as AIDS, cancer, diabetes, malnutrition, and certain genetic disorders.

The immunocompromised shoulder a disproportionate burden

Many who are immunocompromised often have a diminished immune response to COVID-19 vaccination, and therefore remain at higher risk for severe COVID-19, hospitalisation and death than the general population.

Immunocompromised condition or weakened immune system

This includes people who have cancer and are on chemotherapy, or who have had a solid organ transplant, like a kidney transplant or heart transplant, and are taking medication to keep their transplant.

Immunosuppression, also known as immune suppression or immunocompromise, means the immune system isn't working as well as it normally would. This includes any or all of the defences that make up the immune system - particularly the white cells in the bloodstream, the spleen and the lymph nodes.

Immunosuppressive drugs or immunosuppressant are mainly categorized into four major classes' i.e., Glucocorticoids, Protein drugs, Intravenous gamma globulin and Protease inhibiter. Each class is further classified into subclasses.

Avoid raw or rare meat and fish and uncooked or undercooked eggs. Cook meat until it's well-done. Thoroughly cook eggs (no runny yolks) and avoid foods containing raw eggs such as raw cookie dough or homemade mayonnaise. Avoid unpasteurized beverages, such as fruit juice, milk and raw milk yogurt.

What do you call a person with low immunity to disease? ›

But when you're immunocompromised, your immune system's defenses are low, affecting its ability to fight off infections and diseases.

When your immune system fails to respond adequately to infection, it's called an immunodeficiency, and you may be immunocompromised. People may also suffer from the opposite condition, an overactive immune system that attacks healthy cells as though they were foreign bodies, and that is called an autoimmune response.

If you have a weak immune system, you should not drink water from surface sources or groundwater at risk of containing pathogens, unless the water has been treated to remove or inactivate at least 99.9 per cent of parasites (protozoa), 99.99 per cent of viruses and all harmful bacteria.

Immunocompromised condition or weakened immune system

This includes people who have cancer and are on chemotherapy, or who have had a solid organ transplant, like a kidney transplant or heart transplant, and are taking medication to keep their transplant.

A suppressed immune system is weakened to the point that it cannot mount a proper immune response to protect the body from pathogens, such as bacteria, viruses, and other infectious microorganisms. Therefore, people with a suppressed immune system become vulnerable to various infectious diseases.

(IH-myoo-noh-suh-PREH-shun) Suppression of the body's immune system and its ability to fight infections and other diseases. Immunosuppression may be deliberately induced with drugs, as in preparation for bone marrow or other organ transplantation, to prevent rejection of the donor tissue.

Think of your immune system as a strong army. Its mission? To protect you from enemies both foreign (viruses and bacteria) and domestic (diseases like cancer). But when you're immunocompromised, your immune system's defenses are low, affecting its ability to fight off infections and diseases.