Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    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):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Liver Enzyme Question

jasonD2

Recommended Posts

jasonD2 Experienced
jasonD2
Posted

Has anyone ever had an elevated SGPT-ALT?? My blood workup just came back perfect aside from an elevation in this enzyme. My fecal anti gliadin is still high so could there be a correlation with the gluten exposure?

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


nasalady Contributor
nasalady
Posted
Has anyone ever had an elevated SGPT-ALT?? My blood workup just came back perfect aside from an elevation in this enzyme. My fecal anti gliadin is still high so could there be a correlation with the gluten exposure?

Hi jasonD2,

Yes, many people with celiac disease experience elevated liver enzymes. Here is an article on this topic posted on this site:

https://www.celiac.com/articles/1010/1/Live...mron/Page1.html

Also, since many other autoimmune diseases are associated with celiac disease (possibly even caused by celiac disease), autoimmune liver disease has been found to have some connection to celiac disease: Open Original Shared Link

I have both autoimmune hepatitis and celiac disease....plus 5 other autoimmune diseases as well. And fibromyalgia.

From the mention above of "gluten exposure", I assume that you are currently eating gluten. If you decide to go on the gluten free diet, please stay on it! It could prevent you from developing other autoimmune diseases!

Best wishes,

JoAnn

jerseyangel Proficient
jerseyangel
Posted

My levels were mildly elevated before diagnosis, and they tend to rise if I'm glutened. After an episode last year where they went up, I had a complete workup done and my GI said that the elevation in my liver enzymes was "Sprue related".

Yes, just one more reason to remain strictly gluten-free. :)

  • 1 month later...
jasonD2 Experienced
jasonD2
Posted
  • Author

i never had liver chemistry problems in the past but a recent test showed an elevated ALT of 52. everything else was peachy. Does this now mean im going to develop hepatitis? i know for a fact that i got glutened the week prior to the blood draw and am hoping it was either that, lab error or a variant. going for a retest in 2 weeks but im worried about this. anyone have a similar experience?

nasalady Contributor
nasalady
Posted
i never had liver chemistry problems in the past but a recent test showed an elevated ALT of 52. everything else was peachy. Does this now mean im going to develop hepatitis? i know for a fact that i got glutened the week prior to the blood draw and am hoping it was either that, lab error or a variant. going for a retest in 2 weeks but im worried about this. anyone have a similar experience?

Jason,

It very likely has to do with the glutening of the week prior....as I mentioned in my earlier post, it is common to have elevated liver enzymes with active celiac disease. jerseyangel also said that her enzymes rise when she is glutened.

Did you read our replies?? :)

I hope I didn't worry you with my mention of autoimmune hepatitis!

During serious flare-ups of my autoimmune hepatitis (aka AIH) before my diagnosis, my AST/ALT levels tended to hover between 1400 - 3600! Compared to that, 52 is no big deal. I mean, 40 or lower is normal! You're not that far from normal.

If you're really worried though, you could always ask your doctor to do a liver biopsy and run the AIH antibody blood tests (ANA, ASMA, or anti-LKM). But 70+ percent of those with AIH are female, so statistics make it less likely for you.

Good luck with your re-test!

JoAnn

  • 1 month later...
jasonD2 Experienced
jasonD2
Posted
  • Author

I had some blood work done a few months ago and my ALT enzyme was elevated (52 with 40 being the cutoff). I got retested and now its 117 and my AST is now high as well (53)

My doctor isnt too worried and actually did a hepatitis panel today just to rule that out. Im not in the risk group for Hep C and have been vaccinated against hep b - he really wants to check for Hep A because my stool keeps showing new parasites and we cant figure out where im getting them from. he thinks the enzymes might be elevated cause of the parasites or even some of the supplements he had me taking to treat candida (was taking wormwood)

needless to say I am very nervous and just cant seem to get a break. My candida and c.diff cleared up but now I have this to worry about..if its not one thing its something else.

Has anyone had experience with these enzymes being elevated? I have been very strict with my gluten-free diet so i really dont think its that, but who knows. If i now have to live with chronic hepatitis that will just put me over the edge..seriously!

id appreciate some feedback

thanks

Lisa Mentor
Lisa
Posted
My doctor isnt too worried

Then I wouldn't worry either. :D LIfe is too short to worry about something that hasn't happened.

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Schelinski Newbie
Schelinski
Posted

I've been having similar issues with my liver. My Doc hasn't been too worried either. I was tested for hep C over the summer - there really isn't any possible way that I could have hep C, I don't work in a hospital - never had a blood transfusion - and am not a drug user. The test came back positive and they had to do more tests which ultimately came back negative. I was retested a few months later and my numbers were ok. Just had them retested again and they are climbing again.

I've had an u/s of my liver and all was good...am on my way to see a GI next month to see if he has any thoughts on the matter.

At this point, you're doing what you can - checking your counts and such. If the DR isn't too worried, I would try not worrying. Good luck!

jasonD2 Experienced
jasonD2
Posted
  • Author

Thats strange- what could cause the false positive? I would be horrified if I got a positive result..now i have to wait 10 days

Schelinski Newbie
Schelinski
Posted
Thats strange- what could cause the false positive? I would be horrified if I got a positive result..now i have to wait 10 days

I don't really know. I was told that the initial test that was done often shows false positives...then they have to look further and the second test came back negative. Trust me, I was freaking out! But, try not to worry yourself too much! My numbers have been all over the place for a few years; ranging from normal to way off the charts. Hang in there!

Raven's Mum Newbie
Raven's Mum
Posted

Raven's had elevated liver enzymes her whole life as well as an enlarged liver and spleen. At first they thought it was the TPN she was on for so many months, then when it didn't get better after she came off the IV they said it was just a ''CF liver''. When I started learning about celiac and read about unexplained elevated liver enzymes being a symptom, I was surprised they never looked into her having celiac sooner. Even before she started the gluten free diet, her homeopath got it under control. Stunned her dorctors. lol I'm hoping she'll continue to improve in that department even more with her new diet. :D

CaraLouise Explorer
CaraLouise
Posted

Slightly elevated liver enzymes is one of my reactions to gluten. It was actually what prompted having me tested for celiac disease. Could you be getting gluten in your diet somewhere?

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. Scott Adams
      0

      Koikoi Trading Inc., Issues Allergy Alert on Undeclared Wheat and Sesame in FU ZHOU FISH BALL

    2. catnapt
      - catnapt replied to catnapt's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      8

      how much gluten do I need to eat before blood tests?

      oh that's interesting... it's hard to say for sure but it has *seemed* like oats might be causing me some vague issues in the past few months. It's odd that I never really connect specific symptoms to foods, it's more of an all over feeling of unwellness after eating them. If it happens a few times after eating the same foods- I cut back...
    3. trents
      - trents replied to SilkieFairy's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      1

      IBS-D vs Celiac

      Welcome to the celiac.com community, @SilkieFairy! You could also have NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity) as opposed to celiac disease. They share many of the same symptoms, especially the GI ones. There is no test for NCGS. Celiac disease must first be ruled out.
    4. trents
      - trents replied to catnapt's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      8

      how much gluten do I need to eat before blood tests?

      Under the circumstances, your decision to have the testing done on day 14 sounds very reasonable. But I think by now you know for certain that you either have celiac disease or NCGS and either way you absolutely need to eliminate gluten from your diet. I don't think you have to have an official diagnosis of celiac disease to leverage gluten free service in...
    5. SilkieFairy
      - SilkieFairy posted a topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      1

      IBS-D vs Celiac

      After the birth of my daughter nearly 6 years ago, my stools changed. They became thin if they happened to be solid (which was rare) but most of the time it was Bristol #6 (very loose and 6-8x a day). I was on various medications and put it down to that. A few years later I went on this strict "fruit and meat" diet where I just ate meat, fruit, and squash...
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      133,321
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    James Minton
    Newest Member
    James Minton
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.6k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • catnapt
      how much gluten do I need to eat before blood tests?

      By catnapt · Posted

      oh that's interesting... it's hard to say for sure but it has *seemed* like oats might be causing me some vague issues in the past few months. It's odd that I never really connect specific symptoms to foods, it's more of an all over feeling of unwellness after  eating them.  If it happens a few times after eating the same foods- I cut back or avoid them. for this reason I avoid dairy and eggs.  So far this has worked well for me.  oh, I have some of Bob's Red Mill Mighty Tasty Hot cereal and I love it! it's hard to find but I will be looking for more.  for the next few weeks I'm going to be concentrating on whole fresh fruits and veggies and beans and nuts and seeds. I'll have to find out if grains are truly necessary in our diet. I buy brown rice pasta but only eat that maybe once a month at most. Never liked quinoa. And all the other exotic sounding grains seem to be time consuming to prepare. Something to look at later. I love beans and to me they provide the heft and calories that make me feel full for a lot longer than a big bowl of broccoli or other veggies. I can't even tolerate the plant milks right now.  I have reached out to the endo for guidance regarding calcium intake - she wants me to consume 1000mgs from food daily and I'm not able to get to more than 600mgs right now.  not supposed to use a supplement until after my next round of testing for hyperparathyroidism.   thanks again- you seem to know quite a bit about celiac.  
    • trents
      IBS-D vs Celiac

      By trents · Posted

      Welcome to the celiac.com community, @SilkieFairy! You could also have NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity) as opposed to celiac disease. They share many of the same symptoms, especially the GI ones. There is no test for NCGS. Celiac disease must first be ruled out.
    • trents
      how much gluten do I need to eat before blood tests?

      By trents · Posted

      Under the circumstances, your decision to have the testing done on day 14 sounds very reasonable. But I think by now you know for certain that you either have celiac disease or NCGS and either way you absolutely need to eliminate gluten from your diet. I don't think you have to have an official diagnosis of celiac disease to leverage gluten free service in hospitals or institutional care and I'm guessing your physician would be willing to grant you a diagnosis of gluten sensitivity (NCGS) even if your celiac testing comes up negative. Also, you need to be aware that oats (even gluten free oats) is a common cross reactor in the celiac community. Oat protein (avenin) is similar to gluten. You might want to look at some other gluten free hot  breakfast cereal alternatives.
    • SilkieFairy
      IBS-D vs Celiac

      By SilkieFairy · Posted

      After the birth of my daughter nearly 6 years ago, my stools changed. They became thin if they happened to be solid (which was rare) but most of the time it was Bristol #6 (very loose and 6-8x a day). I was on various medications and put it down to that. A few years later I went on this strict "fruit and meat" diet where I just ate meat, fruit, and squash vegetables. I noticed my stools were suddenly formed, if a bit narrow. I knew then that the diarrhea was probably food related not medication related. I tried following the fodmap diet but honestly it was just too complicated, I just lived with pooping 8x a day and wondering how I'd ever get and keep a job once my children were in school.  This past December I got my yearly bloodwork and my triglycerides were high. I looked into Dr. William Davis (wheat belly author) and he recommended going off wheat and other grains. This is the first time in my life I was reading labels to make sure there was no wheat. Within 2 weeks, not only were my stools formed and firm but I was only pooping twice a day, beautiful formed Bristol #4.  Dr. Davis allows some legumes, so I went ahead and added red lentils and beans. Nervous that the diarrhea would come back if I had IBS-D. Not only did it not come back, it just made my stools even bigger and beautiful. Still formed just with a lot more width and bulk. I've also been eating a lot of plant food like tofu, mushrooms, bell peppers, hummus etc which I thought was the cause of my diarrhea before and still, my stools are formed. In January I ran a genetics test because I knew you had to have the genes for celiac. The report came back with  DQ 2.2 plus other markers that I guess are necessary in order for it to be possible to have celiac. Apparently DQ 2.2 is the "rarer" kind but based on my report it's genetically possible for me to have celiac.  I know the next step is to bring gluten back so I can get testing but I am just not wanting to do that. After suffering with diarrhea for years I can't bring myself to do it right now. So that is where I am!   
    • catnapt
      anyone here diagnosed with a PARAthyroid disorder? (NOT the thyroid) the calcium controlling glands

      By catnapt · Posted

      learned I had a high PTH level in 2022 suspected to be due to low vit D  got my vit D level up a bit but still have high PTH   I am 70 yrs old (today in fact) I am looking for someone who also has hyperparathyroidism that might be caused by malabsorption    
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.