Question regarding blood results (IgA deficiency)

[kleggy]

Hi celiac.com peeps! This is my first post on here — a quick question: based on my results below, should I be pursuing DGP IgA and IgG and EMA testing?

I have been dealing with GI problems for the past 6 months. My physician suspects potential celiac based on all of my symptoms, and referred me to a GI specialist who immediately dismissed celiac, did a colonoscopy and biopsy, and then told me nothing was wrong/he ruled everything out, and prescribed me Question (cholestyramine) to bind bile as a band aid fix. That hasn't helped and I am in the process of seeking a new GI specialist. 

Last week my physician ordered a celiac panel (TTG IgA Antibody, Antiendmysial Ab IgA, and total IgA) and a tTG-IgG test, and I just received my results today. (Pasted below.)

Component	Standard Range	Your Value	Flag
Antiendmysial Ab IgA	Negative	Negative
TTG IgA Antibody	0 - 3 U/mL	<2
Negative 0 - 3 Weak Positive 4 - 10 Positive >10 Tissue Transglutaminase (tTG) has been identified as the endomysial antigen. Studies have demonstr- ated that endomysial IgA antibodies have over 99% specificity for gluten sensitive enteropathy.
Immunoglobulin A (IgA)	91 - 414 mg/dL	83	L

Component	Standard Range	Your Value	Flag
TRANSGLUTAMINASE IGG	0 - 5 U/mL	<2
Negative 0 - 5 Weak Positive 6 - 9 Positive >9

Thank you for your help in advance! :-)

Kyle

EDIT: I am still eating gluten and have not yet tried an elimination diet. 

[cyclinglady]

Yes!  Pursue the other celiac tests.  But you are IGA deficient (score 83), so that should give you a false reading on the DGP IGA test as well.  I am not IGA deficient, but I tested positive on ONLY the DGP Iga tests and all the others were negative yet I had a Marsh Stage IIIB biopsy results.  

 

 What were the biopsy results?  How many samples were taken?  You should have or get copies of all your records.  

 

[ahearnsberger]

The genet ic test I did only listed Anti-gliaden IgA. Mine was 11. Normal is less than 10. Anti-tissue Transglutaminase IgA is 6. normal is less than 10. I have HLA-DQB1*301 & HLA-DQB1*304. (Subtype 7,-)

From what I understand, I have 2 copies of the gene for celiac, meaning I'm predisposed to Celiac.  I'd appreciate any help interpreting it further.

 

[cyclinglady]

56 minutes ago, ahearnsberger said:

The genet ic test I did only listed Anti-gliaden IgA. Mine was 11. Normal is less than 10. Anti-tissue Transglutaminase IgA is 6. normal is less than 10. I have HLA-DQB1*301 & HLA-DQB1*304. (Subtype 7,-)

From what I understand, I have 2 copies of the gene for celiac, meaning I'm predisposed to Celiac.  I'd appreciate any help interpreting it further.

 

It looks like you have a mild positive on the Anti-Gliadin IGA test.   A positive is a positive.  You only need one positive on the celiac blood panel.  The next step is obtaining biopsies via an endoscopy to confirm if you have celiac disease.   I suggest reasearching more on the University of Chicago's celiac website.  

Welcome to the forum!

[kareng]

1 hour ago, ahearnsberger said:

The genet ic test I did only listed Anti-gliaden IgA. Mine was 11. Normal is less than 10. Anti-tissue Transglutaminase IgA is 6. normal is less than 10. I have HLA-DQB1*301 & HLA-DQB1*304. (Subtype 7,-)

From what I understand, I have 2 copies of the gene for celiac, meaning I'm predisposed to Celiac.  I'd appreciate any help interpreting it further.

 

Just to clarify - the IgA is not a genetic test.  The HLA tests are the genetic ones of some type

 

 

 

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[kleggy]

On November 9, 2015 at 8:27:33 PM, cyclinglady said:

Yes!  Pursue the other celiac tests.  But you are IGA deficient (score 83), so that should give you a false reading on the DGP IGA test as well.  I am not IGA deficient, but I tested positive on ONLY the DGP Iga tests and all the others were negative yet I had a Marsh Stage IIIB biopsy results.  

 

 What were the biopsy results?  How many samples were taken?  You should have or get copies of all your records.  

 

Thanks so much for your help, cyclinglady. ? I am so appreciative of any advice coming my way during this pre-diagnosis period! I just went in for the DGP and EMA IgG blood draws yesterday — hoping they will indicate something for my next doctor's appointment.

[ahearnsberger]

16 minutes ago, cyclinglady said:

It looks like you have a mild positive on the Anti-Gliadin IGA test.   A positive is a positive.  You only need one positive on the celiac blood panel.  The next step is obtaining biopsies via an endoscopy to confirm if you have celiac disease.   I suggest reasearching more on the University of Chicago's celiac website.  

Welcome to the forum!

Thank you. It's nice to hear from people going through the same thing. 

 

[ahearnsberger]

I have been gluten-free for 3 years now, with the exception of cross  contamination here and there. Would my biopsies reveal anything at this point?

 

[cyclinglady]

3 hours ago, ahearnsberger said:

I have been gluten-free for 3 years now, with the exception of cross  contamination here and there. Would my biopsies reveal anything at this point?

 

Hopefully, they would show healthy villi!  Experts normally just use the blood tests for diet compliance.