Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Low IgA, dr won’t test IgG

Runningyogi
 Share

Recommended Posts

Runningyogi Rookie
Runningyogi
Posted

Just wondering how common this is. I had tTg-IgA and gliandin IgA tested and they both came back at 2, which is without a doubt a “negative result.” However my IgA was 48, the lab cited 79-335 as “normal” and flagged me as low. My PCP said the test shows no celiac, I had already googled and discovered the low IgA situation so I asked her about testing IgG and she said it wasn’t necessary. 

 

Is my IgA just not low enough? I obviously make the antibody just not at a normal level. 

Has anyone else been told this, if so did you push for further testing or get a second opinion? I’m mostly trying to just rule some things out, my son has EoE so it’s not totally unlikely im suffering from something more than IBS. Thanks!

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


kareng Grand Master
kareng
Posted
(edited)
5 minutes ago, Runningyogi said:

Just wondering how common this is. I had tTg-IgA and gliandin IgA tested and they both came back at 2, which is without a doubt a “negative result.” However my IgA was 48, the lab cited 79-335 as “normal” and flagged me as low. My PCP said the test shows no celiac, I had already googled and discovered the low IgA situation so I asked her about testing IgG and she said it wasn’t necessary. 

 

Is my IgA just not low enough? I obviously make the antibody just not at a normal level. 

Has anyone else been told this, if so did you push for further testing or get a second opinion? I’m mostly trying to just rule some things out, my son has EoE so it’s not totally unlikely im suffering from something more than IBS. Thanks!

Your total IGA is not too low for Celiac testing.  The test range isn't specific to Celiac.

"Any level of IgA above 20 mg/dl should make the tTG-IgA test valid, regardless of age."

Open Original Shared Link

 

Edited by kareng
cyclinglady Grand Master
cyclinglady
Posted
(edited)

Your Immunoglobulin A (IgA) is low or below range, but it is enough to determine if the celiac tests work.  It would have to be close to zero.    So, two negatives is probably correct.  However, some celiacs are seronegative.  Some, like me, do not test positive to all the celiac tests (DGP, TTG and EMA).  (I test positive to only the DGP).  Some people at the time of testing might gluten free or gluten light.  In those cases, an endoscopy may be ordered.  

Do you have any deficiencies like low iron or B-12?  That can also help determine a celiac diagnosis.  Or do you already have another autoimmune disorder, like Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis or autoimmune diabetes?  

I am sorry to hear about your son suffering;g from EOE.  

Edited by cyclinglady
Runningyogi Rookie
Runningyogi
Posted
  • Author
41 minutes ago, cyclinglady said:

Your Immunoglobulin A (IgA) is low or below range, but it is enough to determine if the celiac tests work.  It would have to be close to zero.    So, two negatives is probably correct.  However, some celiacs are seronegative.  Some, like me, do not test positive to all the celiac tests (DGP, TTG and EMA).  (I test positive to only the DGP).  Some people at the time of testing might gluten free or gluten light.  In those cases, an endoscopy may be ordered.  

Do you have any deficiencies like low iron or B-12?  That can also help determine a celiac diagnosis.  Or do you already have another autoimmune disorder, like Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis or autoimmune diabetes?  

I am sorry to hear about your son suffering;g from EOE.  

I suffered from low iron for a few years but then had an IUD placed and my iron levels have been normal since.  No other autoimmune that I know of. Just a long history of IBS. 

Thanks for your help! 

GFinDC Veteran
GFinDC
Posted

I think they say that around 5% of people with celiac disease also have low IgA production.  I'd try another doctor for the complete celiac panel.  There are other antibodies they can test and you might show up positive on one of them.  Maybe search for local celiac support group and ask them for a doctor recommendation.

Runningyogi Rookie
Runningyogi
Posted
  • Author
12 hours ago, GFinDC said:

I think they say that around 5% of people with celiac disease also have low IgA production.  I'd try another doctor for the complete celiac panel.  There are other antibodies they can test and you might show up positive on one of them.  Maybe search for local celiac support group and ask them for a doctor recommendation.

 

Thank you! I am seeing lots of conflicting info on low IgA and how it affects the testing. It’s also difficult because when I search most results are for IgA deficiency and not low IgA (deficiency is the close to zero result from what I understand)

i did find a couple of sites that mentioned low IgA specifically and did say to check the IgG, but at this point I feel like a hypochondriac chasing a diagnosis. 

Anyway, thanks for your help everyone. I have a GI appointment next month so I just need to decide if I should trial myself off gluten before hand or wait on the off chance he wants to run another test. I’m just kind of sick of being sick and I’ve felt better off gluten in the past. (I was off gluten due to nursing my wheat, barley and rye allergic son for almost two years)

ravenwoodglass Mentor
ravenwoodglass
Posted
1 hour ago, Runningyogi said:

 

Anyway, thanks for your help everyone. I have a GI appointment next month so I just need to decide if I should trial myself off gluten before hand or wait on the off chance he wants to run another test. I’m just kind of sick of being sick and I’ve felt better off gluten in the past. (I was off gluten due to nursing my wheat, barley and rye allergic son for almost two years)

Please wait to go gluten free as if you go gluten free now the doctor won't be able to test you for celiac.  If your son is 'allergic' to wheat, rye and barley it sounds like he may be celiac. Your being diagnosed could help him as well as yourself.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Runningyogi Rookie
Runningyogi
Posted
  • Author
55 minutes ago, ravenwoodglass said:

Please wait to go gluten free as if you go gluten free now the doctor won't be able to test you for celiac.  If your son is 'allergic' to wheat, rye and barley it sounds like he may be celiac. Your being diagnosed could help him as well as yourself.

He actually outgrew the wheat allergy! Hooray!  He has traditional, IgE mediated, food allergies. He's still allergic to barley and rye.

I think it's probably best to leave the gluten in just in case, even though it really looks like celiac is not what I have. 

erika1petrus Newbie
erika1petrus
Posted

Hello ? I have low IgA. My doctor said that IgA is the immune protein that keeps one from getting sinus infections & breaks down gluten & dairy in the gut. With low IgA, a celiac test will come back with a “false positive”. I was told to treat myself as if I have celiac disease & that the consequences of eating gluten are the same. I am never supposed to eat gluten or dairy. Hope this helps!

tessa25 Rising Star
tessa25
Posted
21 minutes ago, erika1petrus said:

With low IgA, a celiac test will come back with a “false positive”

Low IGA can cause TTG IGA and DGP IGA celiac tests to show a false negative.

Welcome to the forum!

Runningyogi Rookie
Runningyogi
Posted
  • Author
4 hours ago, tessa25 said:

Low IGA can cause TTG IGA and DGP IGA celiac tests to show a false negative.

Welcome to the forum!

Thanks! It’s interesting because the link someone shared above says as long as the IgA is over 20 the test is accurate but I’ve read annecdotal stuff suggesting otherwise. 

cyclinglady Grand Master
cyclinglady
Posted
39 minutes ago, Runningyogi said:

Thanks! It’s interesting because the link someone shared above says as long as the IgA is over 20 the test is accurate but I’ve read annecdotal stuff suggesting otherwise. 

That link is pretty spot on.  The University of Chicago is a leading celiac research center.  We are discussing testing for celiac disease (used as a control test) and not issues with a low Immunoglobulin A and the health issues that arise from that. 

Some celiacs are seronegative period (rare).   If you think your IgA results are incorrect, then ask for the IgG test versions.   If you  and your GI strongly suspect celiac disease, your GI should order an endoscopy.  

You should remain on gluten until all testing for celiac disease is complete.  Since your GI appointment is just a month away, I would advise sticking to a full gluten diet.  Some research centers advise 2 to 4 weeks prior to an endoscopy.  We have seen too many members who just did 2 weeks and then received a negative biopsy result.  Was it because their bodies were slow to generate antibodies and two weeks was just not long enough?  Who knows?  Now they are in diagnostic limboland.  Use the more conservative number, would be my non-medical advice.  

Keep in mind, that sometimes we jump to conclusions with out all the facts.  I could have sworn my niece had celiac disease.  Turns out it was Crohn’s.  I could have sworn I had active celiac disease with my symptoms and an elevated celiac antibodies.  My recent repeat endoscopy revealed healthy villi.    My  current issues were with a new diagnosis — Chronic Autoimmune Gastritis. 

Runningyogi Rookie
Runningyogi
Posted
  • Author

Yeah sorry wasn’t trying to insinuate that the link was wrong. Also, i don’t have any strong feelings that I have celiac. I don’t know WHAT I have unfortunately! I was just trying to rule it out and then I had the low IgA which led to me to researching that and I was curious if that was indicative of something yadda yadda...I fell down an Internet rabbit hole. Lol

  • 3 months later...
pupppy Apprentice
pupppy
Posted

You have iga deficiency... it's called partial iga deficiency. Anything under the range is iga deficient and can invalidate the iga test. According to mayoclinic's algorithm they are supposed to run the igg tests so you are right. I don't know what that other link is saying, but I think you are right

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

pupppy Apprentice
pupppy
Posted

 

On 4/12/2018 at 3:45 PM, cyclinglady said:

Your Immunoglobulin A (IgA) is low or below range, but it is enough to determine if the celiac tests work.  It would have to be close to zero.    So, two negatives is probably correct.  However, some celiacs are seronegative.  Some, like me, do not test positive to all the celiac tests (DGP, TTG and EMA).  (I test positive to only the DGP).  Some people at the time of testing might gluten free or gluten light.  In those cases, an endoscopy may be ordered.  

Do you have any deficiencies like low iron or B-12?  That can also help determine a celiac diagnosis.  Or do you already have another autoimmune disorder, like Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis or autoimmune diabetes?  

I am sorry to hear about your son suffering;g from EOE.  

You're wrong. Partial iga deficiency is still iga deficiency and the doctor is supposed to run igg tests. 

pupppy Apprentice
pupppy
Posted
On 4/12/2018 at 3:42 PM, kareng said:

Your total IGA is not too low for Celiac testing.  The test range isn't specific to Celiac.

"Any level of IgA above 20 mg/dl should make the tTG-IgA test valid, regardless of age."

Open Original Shared Link

 

You and your link are wrong. Algorithms for testing state that if iga is out of range they should test for igg.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. trents
      - trents replied to Roses8721's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      8

      GI DX celiac despite neg serology and no biopsy

      Certainly, it would b wise to have a gene test done if your physician is open to it as it would provide some more data to understand what's going on. But keep in mind that the genetic test for celiac disease cannot be used as to diagnose celiac disease, only to establish the potential to develop active celiac disease. About 40% of the general population possess...
    2. Roses8721
      - Roses8721 posted a topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      0

      gluten-free Oatmeal

      Had Quaker gluten-free oatmeal last night and my stomach is a mess today. NO flu but def stomach stuff. Anyone else?
    3. Roses8721
      - Roses8721 replied to Roses8721's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      8

      GI DX celiac despite neg serology and no biopsy

      So you would be good with the diagnosis and not worry to check genetics etc etc? Appreciate your words!
    4. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to Ginger38's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      5

      Shingles - Could It Be Related to Gluten/ Celiac

      As recommended by @Flash1970, you may want to get this: https://www.amazon.com/Curist-Lidocaine-Maximum-Strength-Topical/dp/B09DN7GR14/
    5. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to Xravith's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      3

      Challenges eating gluten before biopsy

      For those who will likely remain gluten-free for life anyway due to well-known symptoms they have when eating gluten, my general advice is to ignore any doctors who push to go through a gluten challenge to get a formal diagnosis--and this is especially true for those who have severe symptoms when they eat gluten. It can take months, or even years to recover...
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      132,472
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    kygirlsusan
    Newest Member
    kygirlsusan
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      GI DX celiac despite neg serology and no biopsy

      By trents · Posted

      Certainly, it would b wise to have a gene test done if your physician is open to it as it would provide some more data to understand what's going on. But keep in mind that the genetic test for celiac disease cannot be used as to diagnose celiac disease, only to establish the potential to develop active celiac disease. About 40% of the general population possess one or both of the primary genes known to be associated with the development of active celiac disease but only about 1% of the population actually develop active celiac disease. So, the gene test is an effective "rule out" tool but not an effective diagnostic tool.
    • Roses8721
      gluten-free Oatmeal

      By Roses8721 · Posted

      Had Quaker gluten-free oatmeal last night and my stomach is a mess today. NO flu but def stomach stuff. Anyone else?
    • Roses8721
      GI DX celiac despite neg serology and no biopsy

      By Roses8721 · Posted

      So you would be good with the diagnosis and not worry to check genetics etc etc? Appreciate your words!
    • Scott Adams
      Shingles - Could It Be Related to Gluten/ Celiac

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      As recommended by @Flash1970, you may want to get this: https://www.amazon.com/Curist-Lidocaine-Maximum-Strength-Topical/dp/B09DN7GR14/
    • Scott Adams
      Challenges eating gluten before biopsy

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      For those who will likely remain gluten-free for life anyway due to well-known symptoms they have when eating gluten, my general advice is to ignore any doctors who push to go through a gluten challenge to get a formal diagnosis--and this is especially true for those who have severe symptoms when they eat gluten. It can take months, or even years to recover from such a challenge, so why do this if you already know that gluten is the culprit and you won't be eating it anyway?  Approximately 10x more people have non-celiac gluten sensitivity than have celiac disease, but there isn’t yet a test for NCGS. If your symptoms go away on a gluten-free diet it would likely signal NCGS--but those in this group will usually have negative tests, or at best, elevated antibodies that don't reach the level of official positive. Unfortunately test results for celiac disease are not always definitive, and many errors can be made when doing an endoscopy for celiac disease, and they can happen in many ways, for example not collecting the samples in the right areas, not collecting enough samples, or not interpreting the results properly and giving a Marsh score.  Many biopsy results can also be borderline, where there may be certain damage that could be associated with celiac disease, but it just doesn't quite reach the level necessary to make a formal diagnosis. The same is true for blood test results. Over the last 10 years or so a new "Weak Positive" range has been created by many labs for antibody results, which can simply lead to confusion (some doctors apparently believe that this means the patient can decide if they want more testing or to go gluten-free). There is no "Weak Negative" category, for example. Many patients are not told to eat gluten daily, lots of it, for the 6-8 week period leading up to their blood test, nor asked whether or not they've been eating gluten. Some patients even report to their doctors that they've been gluten-free for weeks or months before their blood tests, yet their doctors incorrectly say nothing to them about how this can affect their test, and create false negative results. Many people are not routinely given a total IGA blood test when doing a blood screening, which can lead to false negative interpretations if the patient has low IGA. We've seen on this forum many times that some doctors who are not fully up on how interpret the blood test results can tell patients that the don't need to follow a gluten-free diet or get more testing because only 1 of the 2 or 3 tests done in their panel is positive (wrong!), and the other 1 or 2 tests are negative.  Dermatologists often don't know how to do a proper skin biopsy for dermatitis herpetiformis, and when they do it wrongly their patient will continue to suffer with terrible DH itching, and all the risks associated with celiac disease. For many, the DH rash is the only presentation of celiac disease. These patients may end up on strong prescriptions for life to control their itching which also may have many negative side effects, for example Dapsone. Unfortunately many people will continue to suffer needlessly and eat gluten due to these errors in performing or interpreting celiac disease tests, but luckily some will find out about non-celiac gluten sensitivity on their own and go gluten-free and recover from their symptoms. Consider yourself lucky if you've figured out that gluten is the source of your health issues, and you've gone gluten-free, because many people will never figure this out.    
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.