Blood Testing

[rachellek]

Hi, I've heard mention below of a full panel of blood testing for Celiac and am wondering what those tests are. I've had ATTG, vit d, b12, different things but is there an other test for the antibody factor of the disease? At the time of my testing I had been off gluten for over a month and the test was negative. Would it have been negative anyway had I been eating gluten or is a month long enough to make a difference? Thank you!

[Ursa Major]

If you had your blood test done after being a month off gluten, it is almost guaranteed to be negative, even if you have celiac disease. Meaning it could very well be a false negative, and means nothing.

Even a WEEK off gluten can produce false negatives, never mind a month! Your doctor should have known better. And after a month of gluten-free a biopsy would be useless, too.

So, if you think you have celiac disease you only have two options: Either just go gluten-free and see if you feel better (which is good enough for many doctors even), or go back on gluten for many months and try the tests again. If you were very ill on gluten, that may not be a viable choice.

[wolfie]

Here are the tests:

Antigliadin IgA (AGA IgA)

Antigliadin IgG (AGA IgG)

Anti-Tissue Transglutaminase IgA (TTG)

Anti-endomysial antibodies (EMA)

Total Serum IgA

I agree, that if you had been off gluten, the tests could be negative. You would have to go back on gluten for a significant period of time (at least a month, eating the equivalent of 4 pieces of bread per day) and the results could still be inconclusive.

[Willow5]

In regards to the blood tests - the reference range has "Negetive, Equivocal and Positive" Ranges, my son was positive for the Antigliadin test. I asked my husband to also get tested, he was on low side of Equivocal, his father was middle of the negitive. If a person was not reactive to gluten would they register anywhere in these ranges? I guess what I wonder is if the blood show any antibodies for gluten it seem that they must be having somewhat of a reaction even if it is low or "negitive". And if I am not sensitive to gluten would I have a zero on the range? (I do plan to get tested soon)