Immunology

General: In broad terms, immunology covers the study of all aspects of the immune system. Thus by nature it involves itself heavily, though not exclusively, with infectious and autoimmune diseases. So although the sheer volume of diseases and manifestations can be overwhelming, there are some consistent underlying features to be aware of. First, the majority of laboratory tests are based on identifying an antibody specific to a given antigen. The difficulty with any given patient is determining what specific antibody or limited panel of antibodies to test for. Second, although the current focus appears to be on the humoral (antibody) response, don't forget the cellular immune response.

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