Question about lab work

[Christory77]

So I'm new to all of this. I don't really have stomach issues other than occasional heartburn. Went to a gastro Dr and she took some blood samples. There's a test where the range is 0-19. I have no idea what it is called but mine was 62. She recommended an endoscopy and my anxiety has completely taken over. I'm terrified. I know nothing about this other than what came up when I googled celiac. What came up was a lot of scary this is what can happen to you results. I'm beyond afraid and do t know what to do. Reaching out for help. 

[tessa25]

Having celiac means you have to buy brand b instead of brand a. A diagnosis for most people just means they have to go gluten free. Think of it in phases.

phase 1 - eat all of your favorite stuff with wheat, barley and rye until after the official diagnosis.

phase 2 - eat stews and simple foods until your symptoms go away.

phase 3 - eat whatever you want as long as it's gluten free. There's lots of great tasting equivalents to the stuff you're used to. Barilla pasta, Canyon Bakehouse bread, Betty Crocker cakes.

 

Oh, and the endoscopy is easy peasy.

[Christory77]

Thank you so much for saying that. I don't deal well with unexpected things and getting a phone call saying hey we want you to go to the hospital for an endoscopy has thrown me for a loop. I googled celiac and everything mentioned cancers, chirosis, and lots of scary stuff. It caused me to go into a panic. 

[frieze]

But! you found US. now all will be well.

[Christory77]

The labs finally uploaded to my record. I'll post the results. Don't know what any of it means.

Component Results

Component	Standard Range	Your Value
Immunoglobulin A, Qn, Serum	90 - 386 mg/dL	202
Gliadin IgA	0 - 19 units	62
Gliadin IgG	0 - 19 units	2
T-Transglutaminase IgA	0 - 3 U/mL	<2
T-Transglutaminase IgG	0 - 5 U/mL	<2

 

[tessa25]

The first test is used to verify that a low on an IGA test is valid. In your case it is valid. A high on any one of the other 4 tests should lead to an endoscopy to confirm celiac.

[ironictruth]

Yes, endoscopy is needed. The gliadin tests can be false positive with liver issues, connective tissue disease and other autoimmune disorders. Best to rule out or in celiac before going gluten free.

Have you considered the genetic test? 

[Christory77]

Thanks for the responses. As far as genetic testing goes I wasn't offered that as an option. They ran several labs and everything was normal. We were waiting on celiac to come back and when it did the one marker was high. Not sure who I would talk to about having a genetic test. I did a genesight test for medications and it showed folic acid was questionable. But nothing pertaining to this. Endoscopy is scheduled for Friday. 

[cyclinglady]

When I was diagnosed, only my DGP IgA was elevated.  The rest of the celiac panel was normal.  Even in follow-up testing, I only test positive to the DGP IgA.  My biopsies revealed a Marsh Stage IIIB.  Anemia was my only symptom at the time.  

My research finds that the DGP tests are good for very small children and old people.  I was 51 at the time and did not consider myself old, but there you go!  

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Forgot to add....eat some good sourdough bread for me!  Keep eating gluten until you have completed all testing.  Talk to your doctor about take six or more biopsies.  Some doctors goof and just take two.  Big mistake.  The small intestine is vast (size of tennis court) so it is easy to miss patches of villi damage.  

 

[Christory77]

Thank you. I'm still navigating this. It's very new to me. I'm Italian. I've eaten pasta and bread pretty much every day of my life for 39 years. 

[tessa25]

Barilla makes great tasting gluten free pasta, Etalia makes a great artisan style bread, Canyon Bakehouse makes great bagels and sandwich bread so your good to go there. Canyon also makes focaccia but I've never tried it and it couldn't possibly compare to my sisters focaccia.