IgM and a cheeky monkey.

[glowing]

Can anybody remind me what IgM does. I have a 'summer rash' of tiny little spots on my hands which are extrememly itchy and eventually burst into sore tiny craters. These eventually dry up and the whole top coating of skin peels off my palms. It's only on the palms and fingers. Everything seems okay with my blood except the IgM was 0.25 and flagged as low. Could this be anything to do with the rash I get every summer.

I was trying to pursuade my granddaughter to taste lettuce, that it's and good for the skin. She looked at mine and said "It's not doing yours much good." ;D

[s162216]

Hi,

IgM is the initial immunoglobulin in the immune response, its not very specific but it binds strongly so it is able to keep foreign invaders at bay and kill them until a more specific IgG/A response is developed. When the same organism is encountered again highly specific IgG or A will then be produced instead.
A lot of people with CVID are low in IgM but I would say its unlikely to cause skin problems as its found primarily in serum (blood) because its large size limits diffusion into tissues.

Sam

[glowing]

Thanks Sam. Is 0.25 considered particularly low and does it matter?
Glowing

[liz2mac]

Hi Glowing,
If you have low levels of any Ig (immunolglobulin) it matters. How much it matters and what effect it has on us seems to differ from person to person, let alone for type of immunoglobulin involved. Have you asked your immunologist about this? I'd be fascinated to hear what they think.
Liz