Enterolab Newly Diagnosised W/surprise!

[njcole123]

Hello to all! I am 51 with a mom diagnosised with a biopsy. I sent to EnteroLab for "the best value" and here's my numbers:

Fecal Antigliadin IgA 22.5 (normal range <10 units)

Fecal Antitissue Transglutaminase IgA 24 Units (Normal range <10 Units)

Quantitative Microscopic Fecal Fat Score 91 Units (Normal range <300 units-I'm absorbing well!)

Fecal anti-casein (cow's milk) IgA antibody 16 Units (Normal range <10 Units-SURPRISE)

And I have two copies of a gene that predisposes to gluten sensitivity (but not the main gene for celiac sprue)--I'm still confused about this-----

Am I gluten sensitive or celiac?

My surprise was the dairy. I love dairy and I didn't realize that it was killing me.

My relatives look with skepticism on "mail-order diagnosis". Any help? I think that EnteroLab is valid.

I have gone gluten free and dairy free.

This will be my eating life!

[Rachel--24]

Hi,

Enterolab cant officially diagnose Celiac so you wouldn't know "for sure" unless you had a biopsy with visible damage. It really doesnt matter because what Enteroab *does* tell you is that eating gluten is not good for you and you can develop further health problems if you dont follow the diet. You may never end up with flattened villi (Celiac) w/out having the main genes but there is no guarantee on this so be happy you have answers and good luck with the diet!

P.S. I also dont carry either of the main genes. They havent yet identified all the genes associated with Celiac...there are some who are "proven" Celiac with no main gene.

[njcole123]

Thanks, Rachel. My mom has liver damage with her celiac and she's not in good health at all. I don't intend to harm myself from here on out.

Shouldn't her Dr. had the family notified of this genetic condition? Are we just to keep on damaging ourselves with something toxic to our systems?

I don't want to wait until I have damaged intestines or anything else if I can prevent it. But I still can't believe that mom's Dr. Who is supposed to be a good internist didn't tell my parents about the genetic run of gluten intollerance. One of my brothers is a type 1 diabetic--the other has rheumatoid arthritis--I have skin problems, eszuma.

We are rife with gluten complecations.

Nancy

[Rachel--24]

Yeah...her doctor should have recommended that all family members be tested but sometimes the doctors dont know as much as they should. Also, I dont know how long ago your Mom was diagnosed but even 5 years ago they knew alot less than what is known now.

[CMCM]

Hello to all! I am 51 with a mom diagnosised with a biopsy. I sent to EnteroLab for "the best value" and here's my numbers:

Fecal Antigliadin IgA 22.5 (normal range <10 units)

Fecal Antitissue Transglutaminase IgA 24 Units (Normal range <10 Units)

Quantitative Microscopic Fecal Fat Score 91 Units (Normal range <300 units-I'm absorbing well!)

Fecal anti-casein (cow's milk) IgA antibody 16 Units (Normal range <10 Units-SURPRISE)

And I have two copies of a gene that predisposes to gluten sensitivity (but not the main gene for celiac sprue)--I'm still confused about this-----

Am I gluten sensitive or celiac?

My surprise was the dairy. I love dairy and I didn't realize that it was killing me.

My relatives look with skepticism on "mail-order diagnosis". Any help? I think that EnteroLab is valid.

I have gone gluten free and dairy free.

This will be my eating life!

I'm just curious about what prompted you to get tested in the first place....were you having some symptoms? Your results were somewhat similar to mine, except that I showed up with one celiac gene and one for gluten sensitivity. And the dairy didn't surprise me all that much because I've always had terrible digestive problems with dairy, more so than with gluten I think.

In any case, given all the abundance of evidence about the problems with eating gluten in general, it would not be a bad thing to eliminate it from your diet. I asked Enterolab about the situation given the fact that I have had symptoms for so very long, yet the malabsorption score was quite low for me....and what did that mean? Should I assume no damage would ever occur since it hasn't yet? But Dr. Fine's advice was that I should not eat gluten, or dairy, because serious damage could eventually occur. And I have read many many places that the first inkling many people have that they are celiac is when they get a cancer diagnosis. I don't want to be in that category, and besides, I was sick and tired of the symptoms I had from eating gluten and dairy.

There will always be naysayers about things like Enterolab, but they are not fly by night and when you read all the info on their site, it all adds up. This is a doctor who has a very specific and ongoing interest in celiac disease. Most doctors don't know diddly squat about it yet they assure you that you don't have it....

You just have to evaluate the larger picture. And decide how much expensive and effort you want to do. You could undergo a biopsy just "to see", but then again, not even that can always be accurate. A positive biopsy is informational, but a negative biopsy doesn't necessarily mean you don't have it either.

The bottom line is that celiac is elusive....not all genes are identified yet, the knowledge is not 100% about the condition, testing methods are not 100%. You do what you can with what seems reasonable to you, and ultimately, if you have symptoms, a gluten free diet often tells you far more than a test will.

[njcole123]

The reason that I sent off to the Enterolab for the test is because that my mother has been diagnosed (biopsy) celiac about 18 months ago. The doctor that diagnosised her just gave her a handout with terrible information about foods containing gluten and sent her home. No counciling or recommending that the relatives get tested.

What surprised me was the dairy (anti-caisin antibody). I began eating gluten free when I sent in the test, but I continued to eat dairy-several times a day!

But also surprising was how I felt after I became dairy-free.

It feels good to feel this well!