Allergies: When the Immune System Backfires

Discover how different allergies are understood, diagnosed, and treated today.

The human immune system is designed to fight infection, but sometimes this defence mechanism provokes allergic disorders. In this course, you will explore the similarities and differences of infections and allergies, and understand the intricacies of the immune system.

You will address the events, mishaps, and discoveries that have led to a common understanding of allergies today. You will explore different types of allergies, like food allergies and hayfever, as well as allergy symptoms, methods of diagnosis, and different allergy treatments with the support of case studies.

This course is designed for healthcare professionals or students studying health sciences. It will also be of interest to the general public looking to gain insights into the immune system and allergies.

• Allergy: the history of a misunderstanding
• A tragedy of errors
• Discovering the allergy
• Mapping the immune system
• Touring the castle
• A first case study
• Immediate type mechanism: clinical allergic disorders
• What are atopic disorders? What happens in immediate allergies?
• Knowing clinical immediate (type) allergy
• Diagnosis and therapy of immediate type allergic disorders
• Eczemas and drug hypersensitivity
• Contact dermatitis and eczema
• What is a drug allergy?
• Reviewing the course