Jump to content

  • 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):

Need help deciphering blood results

Countrygiant95
 Share

Recommended Posts

Countrygiant95 Rookie
Countrygiant95
Posted

TRANSGLUTAMINASE,IgA,Ab

Most Recent Results:

22.0    Reference positive under  10       Endomysial Antibody was negative     

GLIADIN(DP) IgA,Ab

1.5  reference positive under 10

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


trents Grand Master
trents
Posted

Welcome to the forum, Countrygiant9!

The posted test results data are confusing.

Positives should be higher than the reference range but the way it's worded in your post, positive is being referred to as under the negative/positive threshold. Can you clarify this?

In other words, as an example, a negative result would be 10 or below and a positive value would be greater than 10. Can you help us out here?

Scott Adams Grand Master
Scott Adams
Posted

I agree, and this article may be helpful:

 

Countrygiant95 Rookie
Countrygiant95
Posted
  • Author
7 minutes ago, trents said:

Welcome to the forum, Countrygiant9!

The posted test results data are confusing.

Positives should be higher than the reference range but the way it's worded in your post, positive is being referred to as under the negative/positive threshold. Can you clarify this?

In other words, as an example, a negative result would be 10 or below and a positive value would be greater than 10. Can you help us out here?

Sorry about that and yes 10 is what’s considered a positive result. Anything under 10 is considered negative 

trents Grand Master
trents
Posted

Two primary celiac antibody tests were run: tTG-IgA, Ab and the endomysial antibody (or EMA for short) and one secondary test (Gliadin DP IGA, Ab). You were positive for one of the two primary tests and negative for the secondary test. It is odd that you were positive for the tTG-IGA but negative for the EMA. The tTG-IGA is the most common test ordered by physicians as it combines good sensitivity with good specificity for celiac disease. I would guess you do have celiac disease but the test results are not unequivocal. The next step for you logically is to pursue an endoscopy with biopsy of the small bowel lining to check for the damage caused to the villous lining that celiac disease causes. This is considered to be the gold standard for celiac disease diagnosis.

Can you tell us what brought about your testing for celiac disease? What symptoms were you having and for how long or was there other lab work that was out of norm that prompted the doc to order celiac antibody testing?

Countrygiant95 Rookie
Countrygiant95
Posted
  • Author
1 minute ago, trents said:

Two primary celiac antibody tests were run: tTG-IgA, Ab and the endomysial antibody (or EMA for short) and one secondary test (Gliadin DP IGA, Ab). You were positive for one of the two primary tests and negative for the secondary test. It is odd that you were positive for the tTG-IGA but negative for the EMA. The tTG-IGA is the most common test ordered by physicians as it combines good sensitivity with good specificity for celiac disease. I would guess you do have celiac disease but the test results are not unequivocal. The next step for you logically is to pursue an endoscopy with biopsy of the small bowel lining to check for the damage caused to the villous lining that celiac disease causes. This is considered to be the gold standard for celiac disease diagnosis.

Can you tell us what brought about your testing for celiac disease? What symptoms were you having and for how long or was there other lab work that was out of norm that prompted the doc to order celiac antibody testing?

I’m hypothyroid with iron deficiency without anemia and we’re not sure why I’m hypothyroid. They just gave me synthroid and my tsh levels are now in the acceptable range so they left it alone 

Just now, Countrygiant95 said:

I’m hypothyroid with iron deficiency without anemia with slow transit constipation and gas and we’re not sure why I’m hypothyroid. They just gave me synthroid and my tsh levels are now in the acceptable range so they left it alone 

 

trents Grand Master
trents
Posted

Kudos to your physician for ordering celiac disease tests in response to your hypothyroidism, for making that connection. Most would not. Can you clarify or give more details about having iron deficiency without anemia? There are several iron measures that can be tested, e.g, hemoglobin, ferritin, transferritin. Some measure immediate serum iron levels and some measure iron in storage and transport. What was it that was actually deficient?

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Countrygiant95 Rookie
Countrygiant95
Posted
  • Author
2 minutes ago, trents said:

Kudos to your physician for ordering celiac disease tests in response to your hypothyroidism, for making that connection. Most would not. Can you clarify or give more details about having iron deficiency without anemia? There are several iron measures that can be tested, e.g, hemoglobin, ferritin, transferritin. Some measure immediate serum iron levels and some measure iron in storage and transport. What was it that was actually deficient?

My total iron was borderline low. My ferritin was like 12 and hemoglobin is perfectly fine 

trents Grand Master
trents
Posted
1 minute ago, Countrygiant95 said:

My total iron was borderline low. My ferritin was like 12 and hemoglobin is perfectly fine 

Sounds like you are on the verge of anemia but you caught it early on.

Countrygiant95 Rookie
Countrygiant95
Posted
  • Author
3 minutes ago, trents said:

Sounds like you are on the verge of anemia but you caught it early on.

All of this popped up at my physical in November. She was saying my thyroid condition might be causing the ttg positive or that I may have something else autoimmune immune going on like crohns

trents Grand Master
trents
Posted

Besides celiac disease, the tTG elevation could point to Crone's but I'm not sure about the thyroid.

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
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      134,077
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      10,442
    terrificterry
    Newest Member
    terrificterry
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.7k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Aretaeus Cappadocia
      Edy's and Dreyer's ice cream

      By Aretaeus Cappadocia · Posted

      Sigh. I posted this yesterday based on the Safeway website. I went back again today to their website to double check. On the page where they are selling Vanilla Bean flavor, it has a distinct Certified Gluten Free label. Other flavors on the Safeway website didn't have the gluten-free statement. Today I went into the store. None of the flavors I looked at, including Vanilla Bean, have a Gluten Free statement. Is it safe? Who knows. The ingredients are either safe or nearly safe (some have "natural flavor"). There are warnings about "contains milk and soy" but not about wheat - this implies they are safe, but again, who knows. On the other hand, every flavor I checked of their Slow Churn line of ice creams has wheat as an ingredient. 100% not safe.
    • knitty kitty
      Edy's and Dreyer's ice cream

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      Do keep in mind that many of the newly diagnosed have lactose intolerance.  This is because the villi lining the intestinal tract are damaged, and can no longer make the enzyme lactAse which breaks down the milk sugar lactOse.  When the villi grow back (six months to two years), they can again produce the enzyme lactAse, and lactose intolerance is resolved.  However, some people (both those with and without Celiac Disease) are genetically programmed to stop producing lactase as they age.   Do be aware that many processed foods, including ice cream, use Microbial Transglutaminase, a food additive commonly called "meat glue," used to enhance texture and flavor.  This microbial transglutaminase has the same immunogenicity as tissue transglutaminase which the body produces in response to gluten in people with Celiac Disease.  Tissue Transglutaminase (tTg IgA) is measured to diagnose Celiac Disease in blood tests.  Microbial Transglutaminase acts the same as Tissue Transglutaminase, causing increased intestinal permeability and inflammation.   New findings show that microbial transglutaminase may be able to trigger Celiac Disease and other autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases.   Microbial Transglutaminase is not required to be listed on ingredients labels as it's considered a processing aid, not an ingredient in the U.S.  Microbial Transglutaminase has been GRAS for many years, but that GRAS standing is being questioned more and more as the immunogenicity of microbial transglutaminase is being discovered. Interesting Reading:  Microbial Transglutaminase Is a Very Frequently Used Food Additive and Is a Potential Inducer of Autoimmune/Neurodegenerative Diseases https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8537092/
    • Aretaeus Cappadocia
      Edy's and Dreyer's ice cream

      By Aretaeus Cappadocia · Posted

      There is a 10 year old post in this forum on Edy's and Dreyer's ice cream. The information is somewhat outdated and the thread is closed to further comment, so here is a new one. Edy's And Dreyer's Grand Vanilla Bean Ice Cream - 1.5 Quart is labeled "Gluten Free". This is a different answer than years gone by. I don't know the answer for any other flavor at this moment. On 1 May, 2026, Edy's website says: "As a general rule, the gluten in Edy's and Dreyer's® frozen dessert products is present only in the added bakery products, such as cookies, cake or brownies. We always label the eight major food allergens on our package by their common name. We recommend to always check the label for the most current information before purchasing and/or consuming a product. The exception to this rule is our Slow Churned French Silk frozen dairy dessert, which contains gluten in the natural flavors." https://www.icecream.com/us/en/brands/edys-and-dreyers/faq It seems that Edy's and Dreyer's are more celiac-friendly than they were 10 years ago. Once I found enough information to make today's buying decision, I stopped researching.
    • Aretaeus Cappadocia
      EDG 3 years ago fine, now it shows focal villous blunting,

      By Aretaeus Cappadocia · Posted

      probably not your situation @Mimiof2, but allow me to add one more to @trents list of celiac-mimics: "olmesartan-induced sprue-like enteropathy"  
    • knitty kitty
      Terrible Neurological Symptoms

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      My dad had an Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm.  Fortunately, it was discovered during an exam.  The doctor could feel my dad's heart beating in his stomach/abdomen.  The aneurysm burst when the doctor first touched it in surgery.  Since he was already hooked up to the bypass machine, my dad survived ten more years.  Close call! Triple A's can press on the nerves in the spinal cord causing leg pain.  I'm wondering if bowing the head might have increased the pressure on an aneurysm and then the nerves.   https://gulfcoastsurgeons.com/understanding-abdominal-aortic-aneurysm-symptoms-and-causes/ Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Presenting as a Claudication https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4040638/
×
×
  • Create New...