hypersensitive

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adj.

Highly or excessively sensitive.

hypersensitiveness hy'per·sen'si·tive·ness or hy'per·sen'si·tiv'i·ty (-tĭv'ĭ-tē) n.

(hī'pursen'si-tiv-nes)
n

A state of altered reactivity in which the body reacts more strongly than normal to a foreign agent.

1. a state of altered reactivity in which the body reacts with an exaggerated immune response to a foreign agent; allergy is a synonym for hypersensitivity. anaphylaxis is a form of hypersensitivity.
There are four basic types of hypersensitivity reactions: Type I (called also immediate hypersensitivity) involves cell-fixed antibody, mainly IgE attached to mast cells or basophils. Antigen binding causes the cell to release vasoactive factors. The basis for anaphylaxis and atopy. Type II causes cell destruction (cytotoxicity) by the action of immunoglobulin with complement or cytotoxic cells. Seen in red blood cell transfusion reactions and in alloimmune hemolytic anemia. See also antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity. Type III (called also immune-complex or subacute hypersensitivity) causes tissue damage and inflammation by the deposition of antigen–antibody complexes that activate complement and attract polymorphonuclear cells. Type IV (called also delayed hypersensitivity) involves sensitized T lymphocytes that react with cell bound or associated antigen and release lymphokines, causing mononuclear cell accumulation, tissue damage and inflammation, typically manifesting at least 24 hours after exposure to the antigen.
2. a state of increased responsivity to physical stimuli.

• h. angiitis — variant of polyarteritis nodosa; a disease of small blood vessels in humans; called also leukocytoclastic vasculitis.
• antibody-mediated h. — types I, II and III hypersensitivity reactions. Called also immediate hypersensitivity.
• bacterial h. — immune responses to bacteria or bacterial products may contribute to the clinical features of some diseases, e.g. the anemia associated with salmonellosis, arthritis in erysipelas of pigs, intestinal lesions in Johne's disease, or be the principal cause as in staphylococcal hypersensitivity dermatitis in dogs.
• contact h. — a type IV reaction produced by contact of the skin with a low-molecular-weight chemical substance having the properties of a hapten in a sensitized individual; it includes allergic contact dermatitis.
• cutaneous basophil h. — a delayed inflammatory response characterized by large numbers of basophils.
• cytotoxic h. — type II hypersensitivity.
• delayed h. — type IV reaction. A slowly developing cell-mediated immune response in which T helper 1 lymphocytes respond to specific antigen by releasing cytokines, some of which activate macrophages, as occurs in tuberculin reaction, graft rejection, some autoimmune diseases, etc.
• drug h. — may be either an immediate (antibody mediated) or delayed type (T lymphocyte mediated) reaction. See also drug eruption.
• flea bite h. — see flea allergy dermatitis.
• food h. — hypersensitivity reaction to various dietary constituents has been the suspected cause of allergic dermatitis in most species, but conclusive evidence is often lacking. It may also result in diarrhea.
• fungal h. — may contribute to the clinical features of cutaneous fungal infections, particularly kerion formation. It is also the basis for skin testing for systemic mycoses, e.g. histoplasmin and coccidioidin.
• helminth h. — occurs, e.g. the self-cure phenomenon, and the allergic response of a sensitized animal to an invasion, e.g. of lungs, causes massive pulmonary edema.
• immediate h. — antibody-mediated hypersensitivity, i.e. types I, II and III, characterized by a response that appears within minutes to hours, resulting either from a release of histamine and other mediators of hypersensitivity from IgE-sensitized mast cells, causing increased vascular permeability, edema and smooth muscle contraction (type I), from antibody-mediated lysis of red blood cells (type II), or from immune complex mediated pathology (type III).
• immune complex h. — type III hypersensitivity (above).
• mold h. — see acute bovine pulmonary emphysema–edema.
• h. pneumonitis — see hypersensitivity pneumonitis.
• staphylococcal h. — see bacterial hypersensitivity (above).
• h. threshold — a theory that certain levels of allergens may be tolerated by some sensitized individuals without manifestations of disease, but a slight increase in the level precipitates clinical signs.
• tuberculin type h. — the classical T lymphocyte cell-mediated hypersensitivity associated with mycobacterium infection or immunization with antigens containing Freund's adjuvant.

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - hypersensitiv, overfølsom

Nederlands (Dutch)
overgevoelig

Français (French)
adj. - hypersensible

Deutsch (German)
adj. - überempfindlich

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - υπερευαίσθητος

Italiano (Italian)
ipersensibile

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - hipersensível

Русский (Russian)
сверхчувствительный

Español (Spanish)
adj. - hipersensible

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - hyperkänslig, lättsårad, överkänslig

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
感觉过敏的, 高灵敏度的, 过敏症的

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 感覺過敏的, 高靈敏度的, 過敏症的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 과민한, 과민증의, 신경질적인

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 感覚過敏の, 過敏な, 過敏症の, 過感作の

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) مفرط الحساسيه, حساس, بصورة حادة أو مفرطه أو غير طبيعيه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮רגיש מאוד, רגיש מעבר לנורמלי‬

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