Abstract
An allergic disease may develop in any organ or system. The respective etiological factors include foreign proteins, infectious agents such as various microbes, viruses, moulds, parasites, chemical compounds often in the form of drugs usually designated as haptens, polysaccharides, benign and malignant neoplasms. Of the factors operating in the causal pathogenesis of such diseases the most important one is an exaggerated formation of antibodies, which appears to be uncontrolled and occurring irrespective of the demands of the organism. The essential morphological features in allergic inflammation are rather variegated, their diagnostic value differing in a wide range but being never absolute. The above features include eosinophilic leucocytes, allergic arteritis and phlebitis, fibrinoid necrotic glomerulonephritis, histiocytic granulomatous inflammation or histiocytic granuloma. Granulomatous capsulitis and trabeculitis affecting the spleen and lymph nodes are believed to be of major diagnostic significance. The immunofluorescent and immunoperoxidase methods and electron microscopy are important diagnostic tools. It has been generally acknowledged that many drugs operate as antigens. They may cause death of the respective patie...Continue Reading