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Any Antibody In Blood Test Mean Sensitivity?

olymatt

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olymatt Newbie
olymatt
Posted

My blood test came back with the following:

TTG Antibody, IGA: <3 (positive being > 8)

IGA Serum: 201 (81-463 normal range)

Quest skipped the EMA Screen and IGG since the above results came back normal.

My question is, does any value greater than 0 for IGA mean a sensitivity? Or does everybody have some normally, and this should be ignored? Is there anything I am misunderstanding?

Thank You,

Matthew

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ravenwoodglass Mentor
ravenwoodglass
Posted

I wish labs wouldn't just 'skip' tests but oh well I guess they have their reasons. I can't really answer your question with any certainty especially with the known high rate of false negatives. I would suggest though that you give the diet a good strict try after you are done with testing. No matter what the test results are a trial of the diet should be done if symptoms suggest gluten intolerance or celiac.

olymatt Newbie
olymatt
Posted
  • Author

I wish labs wouldn't just 'skip' tests but oh well I guess they have their reasons. I can't really answer your question with any certainty especially with the known high rate of false negatives. I would suggest though that you give the diet a good strict try after you are done with testing. No matter what the test results are a trial of the diet should be done if symptoms suggest gluten intolerance or celiac.

But do you know if the lower level of IGA ( the < 3) would suggest a sensitivity? I mean, would I expect to find a 0 if I had no sensitivity at all?

SGWhiskers Collaborator
SGWhiskers
Posted

My blood test came back with the following:

TTG Antibody, IGA: <3 (positive being > 8)

IGA Serum: 201 (81-463 normal range)

Quest skipped the EMA Screen and IGG since the above results came back normal.

My question is, does any value greater than 0 for IGA mean a sensitivity? Or does everybody have some normally, and this should be ignored? Is there anything I am misunderstanding?

Thank You,

Matthew

I'm unsure what a test result of greater than 3 means. Did you make a typo that should have said less than 3? According to your test range, any result less than 8 would be negative. If you have a 3, that means you are negative and does not mean you have a little sensitivity.

With that said, there are a huge number of posters on this site who have found relief from the gluten-free diet dispite negative blood work. Even though your results are negative, I highly suggest you try a strict 3 month trial on the diet. You can continue to look for other reasons for your symptoms with your doctor, but you may find that the gluten-free diet works.

Medicine has learned a lot about celiac disease, but there is still more to learn. Right now, only a few genes are tested for celiac disease. Within the past year, scientists identified about another dozen that trigger celiac. There are people who have negative blood work, but positive endoscopies. The people who test negative for celiac, but respond well to the gluten-free diet are considered gluten intolerant. It is possible that this is celiac disease that medicine has not learned how to identify yet. It is also possible that this is another similar disease. Either way, if you have enough symptoms to have led you to celiac testing, don't stop the investigation of your illness just because of a negative test result. The 3 month gluten-free trial should be your next step along with exploring other causes for your symptoms with your doctor.

Hope you are feeling better soon.

Skylark Collaborator
Skylark
Posted

My blood test came back with the following:

TTG Antibody, IGA: <3 (positive being > 8)

IGA Serum: 201 (81-463 normal range)

Quest skipped the EMA Screen and IGG since the above results came back normal.

My question is, does any value greater than 0 for IGA mean a sensitivity? Or does everybody have some normally, and this should be ignored? Is there anything I am misunderstanding?

Thank You,

Matthew

The second test that has you confused is for total IgA. It determines whether you make normal amounts of IgA so the TTG test is valid. Low IgA is also a risk factor for celiac. You have a completely normal result there. That is why Quest skipped the IgG test.

On the TTG, <3 is simply a negative result. These types of tests tend to have a little background noise so zero readings are somewhat uncommon.

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