03-03-2008, 02:49 AM
The most common form of mastocytosis (say "mass-toe-sigh-toe-sis") is a disease of the skin. In very rare cases, mastocytosis can affect other parts of the body, like the stomach, the intestines and the bone marrow. This condition results when a person has too many mast cells.
Mastocytosis can occur in people of any age. It's more serious in adults. It's usually mild in children, and they often outgrow it.
Mast cells are a kind of blood cell made by your bone marrow. They're part of your immune system that helps you fight off infections. There are more of these cells in the skin, the lungs and the intestines than in other parts of your body. Mast cells make a chemical called histamine. Normally, this chemical serves as a kind of alarm to let the immune system know that an infection is attacking part of the body. Histamine can cause swelling, itching and redness when your body reacts to something like an insect bite or a bee sting.
We don't know why some people have too many mast cells. We do know some things that trigger the release of histamine from mast cells and cause the symptoms of mastocytosis. Symptoms may be triggered by cold or heat, certain medicines, emotional stress and insect bites. The triggers aren't the same in every person.
The symptoms are different, depending on where the extra mast cells are. If there are too many mast cells in your skin, you might have a red and itchy rash. You could get hives or have a rash that looks like freckles. If you rub the rash, it may get red and swollen. Sometimes the mast cells collect at one spot in your skin and cause one large lump.
If the mast cells are in your stomach and intestines, you might have diarrhea and stomach pain. However, this is rare.
In some people, the extra mast cells cause a serious reaction, like a bad allergy reaction. Their blood pressure may suddenly drop to a low level, causing them to faint. They may have trouble breathing. This reaction can cause death if treatment isn't started right away. This kind of serious reaction is very rare.
Mastocytosis can occur in people of any age. It's more serious in adults. It's usually mild in children, and they often outgrow it.
Mast cells are a kind of blood cell made by your bone marrow. They're part of your immune system that helps you fight off infections. There are more of these cells in the skin, the lungs and the intestines than in other parts of your body. Mast cells make a chemical called histamine. Normally, this chemical serves as a kind of alarm to let the immune system know that an infection is attacking part of the body. Histamine can cause swelling, itching and redness when your body reacts to something like an insect bite or a bee sting.
We don't know why some people have too many mast cells. We do know some things that trigger the release of histamine from mast cells and cause the symptoms of mastocytosis. Symptoms may be triggered by cold or heat, certain medicines, emotional stress and insect bites. The triggers aren't the same in every person.
The symptoms are different, depending on where the extra mast cells are. If there are too many mast cells in your skin, you might have a red and itchy rash. You could get hives or have a rash that looks like freckles. If you rub the rash, it may get red and swollen. Sometimes the mast cells collect at one spot in your skin and cause one large lump.
If the mast cells are in your stomach and intestines, you might have diarrhea and stomach pain. However, this is rare.
In some people, the extra mast cells cause a serious reaction, like a bad allergy reaction. Their blood pressure may suddenly drop to a low level, causing them to faint. They may have trouble breathing. This reaction can cause death if treatment isn't started right away. This kind of serious reaction is very rare.