Understanding My Test Results

[laurie9141]

have my bloodwork in my hands.. says celiac disease IGG is 9 and IgA is 4

Tissue transglutamin Ab IGa is 6

Reticulin IgA screen is neg... have all the s+ s but this is negative right? how long to not eat gluten before a false neg? these are antibodies or no? anyone? thanks

[laurie9141]

no one answered am discouraged. called dr office have appt on feb 23rd. but to discuss what? I see alot of you on here say drs. dont " get it" don't know WHAT to eat, to go on the diet or no? waste a whole lotta money on expensive food... what type of dr to see an Internist, but my results from last year are as stated above... What tests to I additionally get? message they left today say celiac "panel" anyone know what that is or should I bother? thanks

[psawyer]

Different labs, and different specific tests, measure differently. It is not possible to interpret your lab results without knowing the reference ranges for the test that the lab did. If you have the full lab report, those reference ranges will appear next to the tested values.

The celiac panel consists of one or more tests for antibodies in the blood that are indicative of autoimmune reaction to gluten, and one test that measures total serum antibody levels. The latter test must be "normal" to validate the other test(s). If you are not producing antibodies in normal volume, then the absence of the gluten-specific antibodies may be a false negative.

Ttg IgA is the most specific test for celiac disease, but it is not the most sensitive. The value of 6 is negative or low positive, depending on the parameters of the specific test that was done.

All of the blood tests measure antibodies in the blood, and these antibodies are only produced as a result of exposure to gluten. The more gluten exposure, the more antibodies, so a diet with plenty of gluten is necessary for the tests to be meaningful. A celiac who has been successfully following the gluten-free diet will test negative (I do).

[Wolicki]

no one answered am discouraged. called dr office have appt on feb 23rd. but to discuss what? I see alot of you on here say drs. dont " get it" don't know WHAT to eat, to go on the diet or no? waste a whole lotta money on expensive food... what type of dr to see an Internist, but my results from last year are as stated above... What tests to I additionally get? message they left today say celiac "panel" anyone know what that is or should I bother? thanks

Laurie,

looks like you are IGa deficient. Normal range is like 40-90. Iga deficiency means that the Celiac panel will not give you an accurate test result. I am not an expert on this,but put Iga deficiency in the search bar on this site to learn more.

The big problem is that docs just don't understand Celiac. Most of us have taken our health into our own hands and researched on our own to get better. If you have all the symptoms of Celiac or gluten intolerance, you many want to give the diet a try to see if you feel better. It doesn't have to be expensivn, and it's best to start with whole, natural foods and not eat the gluten free replacement foods. Your insides need time to heal. The best advice I can give you is to stop trying to get an answer from doctors who know very little about this, and just see if going gluten free helps you. If you have positive dietary response, you will have your answers.

If you do decide to try the diet, most have problems with dairy at first, and many have problems with nightshade veggies: tomatoes, potates, peppers and eggplant. These are usually secondary food intolerances. The good news is that for most, it is temporary.

I hope you feel better soon!

Janie