Does this increase in IgA mean anything?

[JM12]

I took a blood test last month, which only tested ttg IgA and was negative (1 u/mL). And I’m not IgA deficient. Now I wasn’t eating gluten everyday before that, but was eating gluten at least 1-2x/week.

I decided to do a more proper gluten challenger and ate 2 pieces of bread everyday, and felt very validated that gluten was the cause because my symptoms got much much worse. I decided to test again for the full panel after 3 weeks of the challenge (I know, still not the full 8-12 weeks. I was hoping that it would help that I was “gluten light” prior). I tested negative on all 4.

Well, at this point, I’m done consuming gluten and I’m not going to worry about more testing or doing the endoscopy. I’m just going to go completely gluten free.

I was curious though. On the second test, my ttg IgA went up to 1.7.

Does that mean anything? Is the 1 vs 1.7 pretty insignificant, or could it be some possible evidence that my body was reacting to the gluten over that 3 week challenge?

full results:

ttg IgA:  1.7 

ttr IgG:  4.23

DGP IgA:  4.1

DGP IgG:  6.0

[cyclinglady]

Who knows?  What is clear is that your experiment might have failed.  Three weeks is not the recommended gluten challenge, especially if you had been gluten light prior.  Your TTG could be increasing due to celiac disease developing or (another autoimmune illness) or it could just be “off”.   The blood tests are not perfect and I do not think they can detect subtle changes. If that were the case, endoscopies might not be need to diagnose celiac disease.  Know too that some celiacs are seronegative (about 10% if I recall).

You might be feeling better on a gluten free diet because of FODMAPS which are foods that can be eliminated or reduce to help manage IBS symptoms.  Wheat is a FODMAP.  

https://www.ibsdiets.org/fodmap-diet/fodmap-food-list/

 

Edited December 25, 2019 by cyclinglady

[RMJ]

I used to develop tests for antibodies. I would say the difference between 1 and 1.7, when both are in the negative range, is meaningless.  If you were to run a test10 times using the same tube of blood there would be some variation in the results.

 

[Caligirl57]

Hi Cyclinglady,

i honestly think the best way to diagnose celiac is an endoscopy. It seems to be the gold standard. 
 

I went strictly gluten free after my diagnosis. I feel so much better! Please give it a try, 100%. Most restaurants can accommodate celiacs. You might miss some foods but the thought of eating gluten and it’s repercussions on my body are NOT worth it.

 

Best wishes

Caligirl57

[JM12]

Thank you all for the feedback. I sent this reply as a follow in another thread that RMJ replied to as well, but I wanted to share here too for anyone else that happens across this question. So, here's my update 8 months later.

I ended up going completely gluten free, and I can confidently say it was one of the best decisions I've ever made in my life. I never did a biopsy to look in my intestinal track, which is a little disappointing because I could have taken that opportunity when I was eating gluten, but 8 months gluten-free, it's too late for that and that's okay with me! My mental clarity and my physical health (in most aspects) is like never before and I can't believe that I didn't know this is how I was supposed to feel. I definitely dealt with a recovery time (and temporary symptoms of other food intolerances, possibly a "leaky gut". I had trouble eating high FODMAP for a while but they're much better now. Still can't do gluten at all). 

 

I don't have health insurance so getting an endoscopy for a non-emergency was out of the question for me. I am getting health insurance for this upcoming year because I did just get an official diagnosis of type 1 diabetes after new additional issues that escalated pretty quickly. I've seriously wondered if celiac "triggered" any disposition I had for diabetes, but that's just a conjecture and there's no way I or anyone will never know that one for sure... With insurance next year, I've thought about seeing a specialist to discuss my gluten experience. But I've decided I am in no way ever doing a gluten challenge again. My symptoms when I just get cross-contaminated can be pretty rough and I don't see the point in ever putting my health in jeopardy again for something that may or may not confirm a diagnosis. I'm very comfortable never knowing for sure if it's celiac or NCGS, because my lifestyle will stay the same either way. Maybe in the future, we'll have a way of diagnosing celiac in gluten free people without a gluten challenge 🤔