Test Results For My 10yo Dd - Please Help

[JulieMamato5]

I am quite new to understanding about Celiac disease and gluten intolerance. My 10yo dd has had intestinal cramping for over a year, with many tests, and nothing coming back positive. She also has diarrhea. It seemed to start with a sudden onset. At the encouragement of a friend who has celiac, I had my dd's blood tested. My dr said that the test was negative, but I had him send me a copy of the test. Here are the results

IGA - 83.8 MG/DL

TIgA - 7.9 U/ML

And, beneath the TIgA test this is written

Comments: Reference range for transglutaminase IGA ABS

Less than 4.0 U/ML.....Negative

4.0-10.0 U/ML.....Weak Positive

Greater than 10.0......Positve

Is this true? And, what does this mean? It the "normal range" 0-19? Is she a weak positive? She does have 2 aunts who have never tested for celiac, but avoid gluten because it makes them feel sick.

We also took her off gluten after this test was done, and she has not complained of cramping in 7 days!!! She felt so sick for so long, that she told me that she didn't care if she couldn't eat "regular" desserts any more, she wanted to feel better!

Any help would be appreciated!!! Julie

[mftnchn]

Hopefully others can contribute here. My impression is that you only had two of the five tests that are recommended on this site.

Also what is the reference range for the first test result?

[2kids4me]

Every lab has normal values. Even if she came back weak positive - its still positive. My daughter had the lowest number you can have and still be called postive. She had a biopsy that was conclusive for celiac (damage consistent with celiac sprue).

Another consideration is lactose intolerance - even more common than celiac.

You can try at home to withdraw dairy for a few days and see if symptoms get better. Give milk - if symptoms return - then try lactose free milk or give Lactaid with the milk. See if it helps.

If it doesnt then you may be looking at casein allergy ...as in - you withdraw dairy / she gets better / re-introduce dairy even lactose free and symptoms return - then you should have her tested for food allergies,

Lots of gluten free treats out there - all fruits for sure, I mastered gluten-free gingersnaps and choc chip cookies - Thanks to Bette Hagman cookbooks

I hope you get to the bottom of whatever is making her sick.

Sandy

[JulieMamato5]

Also what is the reference range for the first test result?

The normal range for the IGA was 45-236 - And she was clearly below 236. Thanks for the help.

[EBsMom]

A weak positive is still a positive in my book. If she's feeling better off gluten, then I'd stay that course. (If you're considering any more formal testing, though, she'd need to keep eating gluten.) My dd (10, also) went gluten-free before I realized what the testing procedure was all about....and we declined to put her back on gluten because she was feeling so much better. We ended up doing the Enterolab fecal test and that confirmed what we'd already seen with her dietary response....she's intolerant to gluten and casein. It's been 4 months now, and she's like a new kid! Good luck to you and your dd!

Rho