So What Exactly Is Wrong With Me

[Sandi*]

I've been diagnosed with IBS after a colonoscopy back in 04 but I had symptoms since I was a teenager (and my mom told me that even as a child I had "poor" digestion and suffered from constipation). My symptoms were (and still are) bloating, constipation, cramps, fatigue, and knee pain (for which I have been treated separately). After my IBS diagnosis I've been on and off following the IBS diet - no dairy, no fatty foods, lots of soluble fiber, etc. with only some improvement. Two years ago my family MD suggested that I should be tested for celiac disease and did the blood tests which came back negative. He sent me to a gastro doc. After the blood test I decided to try going gluten/wheat free anyway and I felt better. So I asked my gastroenterologist to do an endoscopy anyway. He took a few biopsies and said everything looked OK and there was no reason for me not to eat wheat. But I definitely felt better on a gluten-free diet. I still had some bloating and pain but I think that was because I was eating dairy which is a trigger for IBS. But, because I didn't get completely bloating/pain free and I missed bread so much I started eating wheat again. Well, that certainly didn't make me feel better, either.

So, I was wondering whether the fact that my IgA levels are very low can somehow impact the celiac testing? That the boodwork would come back as false negative and my biopsies would also be false negative?

Generally I think my immune system is fine, I don't really get sick or infections any more then other people.

I did the testing because I was hoping to have some diagnosis which would help me stick to the diet. This way it's only my guess as there are so many triggers when it comes to IBS that it's hard to point them out. Right now I'm trying gluten-free again and I plan on cutting our dairy as well to see results. I've been dairy free before but was eating wheat back then. I find it hard to avoid both since I love both so much. THat's why I was looking for an official diagnosis.

[lizard00]

Actually, low IgA can most definitely skew test results. I am not sure what tests your DR did, but 3 out of 4 of the celiac panel are IgA based.

SO.... If someone is low in IgA, their test results would be falsely low. This is my case also. However, the PA who read my results is not too savvy in Celiac (surpirse) so she signed off that my score of 19L (range starts at 80L) was fine. I am eventually going to see the DR there and will discuss that with her, but I am already gluten-free, so the testing at this point is well... pointless.

If you feel better gluten-free, don't worry about your GI. No doctor can argue with that, and even they'll admit that. IBS is such a catch-all, if only the doctors would take the time to figure out the "irritable" part of it. I know I cannot handle gluten, whether I'm celiac or not, I don't know. Maybe one day I'll have a concrete answer, but until then, it's gluten-free for me!

[tarnalberry]

yes, IgA deficiency can lead to misinterpreted results, because you don't have the same 'maximum' if you're IgA deficient, and a number of the celiac blood tests are IgA tests.