Immune Globulin

Overview

Immune globulin (also called gamma globulin or immunoglobulin) is a substance made from human blood plasma. The plasma, processed from donated human blood, contains antibodies that protect the body against diseases. When you are given an immune globulin, your body uses antibodies from other people's blood plasma to help prevent illness. And even though immune globulins are obtained from blood, they are purified so that they cannot pass on diseases to the person who receives them.

Specific types of immune globulin are made to protect against specific diseases, such as hepatitis, chickenpox, or measles. Immune globulin injections may:

• Give short-term protection against or reduce the severity of certain diseases.
• Protect your fetus if you are pregnant and at risk for Rh sensitization.
• Decrease the immune system's ability to attack body tissues in some cases of autoimmune disease.
• Help people who have an inherited problem making their own antibodies or those who are having treatment for certain types of cancer (such as leukemia). Treatments for some cancers can cause the body to stop producing its own antibodies, making immune globulin treatment necessary.

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Author:	Maria G. Essig, MS, ELS	Last Updated: February 12, 2009
Medical Review:	E. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine W. David Colby IV, MSc, MD, FRCPC - Infectious Disease
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