Iga Serum Level Low

[opaqueblues]

Hi I am new to this site, and I amnew to the whole "Celeic" world. I have had severe bowel problems since I was 6-7 years old. All of my adult life I was told I had colitis, or IBS. Recently my hubby found a magazine article explaining Celiac's and he insisted I see my doctor and have bloodwork done for it.

He called me and told me that the tests were not definitive,....he said that my IGA serum levels are low, but so are my Iga antibodies. He is having me go in for a biopsy to decide whether or not I have Celiac's.

I have a few questions:

1. What would cause my Iga serum leves to be low?

2. I have also been diagnosed with hypothyroid problems,.....can this be related?

3. I had been diagnosed years ago with questionable Lupus, as a particular protien was found in my urine , and my ANA came back slightly high.

If my biopsy comes back negative for Celiac's, what is causing my over all IGA serum level to be on the low side?

also Ihave read that the low serum levels may have something to dow ith kidney problems. while Ihave no kidney problem ( no pain, no infections etc) I have never been able to urinate the amount the one normally urinates during the day. I can drink tons of liquids and seem to never have to urinate (but for that Ihold water in my extremities).

I am a 54 year old female, and I am just starting to realize that all of these issues may be related. Ihave seen different doctors in the past for different symptoms but no one has ever been able to really put the whole picture together. My mother was diagnosed with Antiphospholipid Syndrome which is an autoimmune disease and I am wondering if all of my problems could be one particualr autoimmune problem?

I know I have thrown a lot of questions out there, but if anyone has an answer for me Iwould greatly appreciate it.

Thank You

[cruelshoes]

Welcome to the board. I'm sorry you are having difficulties. Some people are just Open Original Shared Link. It's about one in 600 people, and is more common in causasians. In that case, the doctors should run the IgG versions of the tests. There is an IgG version of the TtG (Anti-tissue Transglutaminase Antibody). There is also an IgG version of the Antigliadin antibody, although that one has somewhat fallen out of favor due to its lack of specificity to celiac (ie. other things can cause it to be elevated).

If your thyroid problem is an autoimmune one, it can be linked to celiac. having one autoimmune condition predisposes one to having another. Also, the general imbalance that is caused bu the malabsorption from celiac can affect all kinds of things in your body. That could certainly cause thyroid problems. Lupus is an autoimmune condition, so that is another possible indicator.

It is not uncommon for us to bounce from doctor to doctor trying to get diagnosed. The average time for diagnosis is 11 years. It took me 18 years to get a diagnosis. Celiac is often referred to as the "great immitator" because its symptoms closely mirror may other conditions. It is often hard for doctors to track down, simply because so many people present with symptoms that are not clasically associated with celiac (diarrhea and weight loss).

Good luck with your biopsy and feel free to ask any questions you have.

[vmlehtonen]

My daughter and I are also IgA deficient, that's what it sounds like you are. IgA is the most common globulin deficiency there is, it just means that you might be a little more prone to sickness than others, and more prone to other autoimmune diseases (from what the doctors say). They also thought she may have Lupus; those are autoimmune diseases. As is Celiac. I agree with the other post that you should get the IgG versions of the tests, they can do TtG IgG, EMA (Endomesial Antibody) IgG, and AGA IgG. This would give a better indication on whether you were reacting to gluten and maybe would give you enough of an answer to not have a biopsy. Some doctors don't like to order the IgG versions, although a Gastroenterologist would be better about what tests to order.

Good luck. Keep searching, and educate yourself so you know what to look for. Here are a couple of good websites to look at that talk about being IgA deficient and testing for celiac.

Vickie

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[fedora]

hi,

would you mind sharing your test results. I am curious what your IgA levels are.

[opaqueblues]

hi,

would you mind sharing your test results. I am curious what your IgA levels are.

I don't actually know what the numbers are, the doctor just told me that I have a low Iga serum level. This is all so new to me myhead is spinning with thest names, but no knowledge of what the heck they all are. I have been trying to research the terms online, but am finding myself even more confused, lol! I know this will all take time for me to be able to wrap my brain around all of this.

Thank you to those who have replied to my posts. any tidbit of information I can get in "laymans" terms is very helpful.

I am a nursing assistant, and also one of my sons is a transplant patient , so Ihave been exposed to a lot of medical information. I have determined that if I could "catch on" to everything else I've had to deal with, it's just a matter of time before I "get it " with all of this new jargon!!!

[opaqueblues]

I got paperwork today with my test results on it from my doctor.

There were 2 tests that came back low:

1. AST (SGOT),......12U/L

2. IGA,.................59mg/d

I don't know what this all means but I am looking it up on the internet and I have found more about the Iga test than the AST .

Anyone is welcome to jump in and explain away , lol!

[nora-n]

Hi, about 10% of the population have low IgA.

The connection to celiac is:

1. then they need to run the IgG versions of all the celiac tests because the IgA versions of hte tests then are meaningless

2. those that have low IgA are a bit more prone to celiac so the doctors should be on the lookout for celiac in those people.

nora

[opaqueblues]

Hi Nora, I too have hypothroid ( it sounds like you have that) and it was diagnosed by a naturopathic m.d.. I don't know if you know about Armor Thyroid, but it is natural thyroid made from bovine thyroid. It is a wonderful thyroid medication and it works so well it very seldom needs to be adjusted. Just thought you might like to know about it. I've bee on it for many years now and have only once had to have my dosage slightly adjusted !

Cathy

[lizard00]

I'm IgA deficient too. If your IgA serum is low, your IgA tests would naturally be low or negative. My Celiac Panel was negative. I went gluten-free though, on my own, which I just figured skewed the whole thing. My GI told me that because of the low IgA my test was absolutely useless, and we went with a genetic panel.

If you are still consuming gluten, you can have your doc do the IgG versions of the tests, or you as a possibility try the genetic panel.

As it turned out, with negative bloodwork, I do have Celiac.