CGD Association

Getting patients well, keeping them well, and focusing on a cure
	Welcome Do I Have CGD? After Being Diagnosed General Information about CGD Support for Parents/Patients Wish Foundations Kids/Teens/Young Adults Doctor Visits & Hospitalizations Specific Infecting Organisms Drug Therapies Specific Disease Help Your Time in the Hospital Financial Help Sibling Support Updates on CGD Patients (2011) Updates on CGD Patients (2013) Bereavement Professional PID Links Awarded Grants Clinical Trials Fundraising Links Contact & Nonprofit Info	Do I have CGD? Warning Signs That You May Have CGD Keep in mind that CGD is very rare—consult your doctor. Infections that may require the use of IV antibiotics/antifungals to clear Pneumonias that occur frequently and/or difficult to cure Lymph nodes in the neck or groin that are swollen Growth retardation or failure to gain weight Abnormal wound healing due to granulation Colitis or persistent diarrhea Infecting organisms such as: Aspergillus, Nocardia, Burkholderia cepacia, Staphylococcus aureus, Serratia marcescens, Listeria, Salmonella, E. coli, Klebsiella, and Candida Bone infections Abscesses in organs such as the lung, liver, spleen or brain Skin infections, such as abscesses or cellulitis Granulomas of the stomach, urinary track, or esophagus Perianal or perirectal abscesses Septicemia Unexplained fevers How does CGD differ from other primary immune deficiencies (PIDs)? CGD is one of the over 185 PIDs. Unlike many PIDs, CGD patients have the ability to fight viral, but not bacterial or fungal infections. The cell can engulf the germ but the cell lacks the oxygen burst to kill the germ. Diagnostic Tests for CGD Dihydrorhodamine test (DHR) The DHR test has widely replaced the NBT test. It is more accurate. Whole blood is stained with DHR, incubated, and stimulated to produce superoxide radicals which oxidize DHR to rhodamin in cells with normal function. In CGD (X-linked) this does not happen. In the autosomal recessive type, there may be some activity. Nitroblue tetrazolium dye reduction test (NBT) The NBT test checks to see if cells can change a colorless chemical (NBT) into a deep blue color, formazan, which is visible on microscopic inspection. In CGD the color does not turn blue, meaning they are not producing reactive oxygen species which is needed to kill bacteria. What is not CGD If there are terms such as “granulomatous” “calcified granulomata” “old granulomata” “hilar calcification” “residuals of previous granulomatous disease” on an x-ray report, it suggests that there was an infection, probably many years before, by a bacteria or fungus that tends to form granulomas, which are a particular kind of inflammatory reaction. This could have been pneumonia, etc. This does not mean that there is currently an active infection. This is also not the disease CGD. Many people confuse the two terms.