Acquired immunity is when an organism develops immunity to a disease during its lifetime, through factors such as vaccinations, previous exposures, or immunity passed on from the mother. There are two types: permanent and temporary. Boosters may be needed to strengthen immunity, and antibody tests can determine if immunity has been acquired.
An acquired immunity is one in which a defence, or immunity, to a disease is acquired during an organism’s lifetime. This means that when the organism’s life began, it had no natural immunity to the condition. Acquired immunity can be the result of a number of different factors, including vaccinations, previous exposures, or even immunity passed on from the mother before the baby was born.
There are two types of acquired immunity: one that remains permanently or for a long time, and one that is temporary; the latter is known as passive immunity. For example, some pets may be born with immunity to rabies passed on from their mother, but this is only a temporary or passive immunity. Eventually, for those pets to be immune to the disease, they’ll need to get their own set of vaccinations.
To be most effective, some types of acquired immunity may need to be strengthened from time to time. When some children get shots, for example, they may need the same shot later in childhood, which is known as a booster. The same is true in adults for diseases such as tetanus, which also requires periodic boosters to be most effective.
In some cases, acquired immunity comes after a person has been subjected to a certain disease. Chickenpox, for example, was a very common disease, especially among children. Once individuals had the disease once, it became unlikely they would ever get it again. If the disease came back, future cases usually weren’t as bad because the body had already developed ways to fight it.
Acquired immunity is common after infections, as long as the individual survives and recovers. However, despite immunity, individuals often fall prey to diseases that are seemingly the same, such as those that cause conditions associated with the common cold or the flu. In these cases, there are usually a number of similar viruses causing the same symptoms. These are known as different strains and it is impossible to have an immunity against all of them.
For those who are not sure whether they have acquired immunity to a certain disease, some antibody tests may be done to make that determination. This is something that is beneficial, especially for those who may have to go through a whole series of expensive or painful shots to protect themselves from an illness. To perform these tests, see a local doctor, who will likely need to take a blood sample and have it analyzed in a laboratory.
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