to Sherry and Deanna

[Guest guest]

Hello Pelin, and Welcome. Sherry and Deanna are correct about ANA testing. Be sure to visit the

main Lupies website and find the articles on ANA tests, results, and interpretations. They can be

very helpful in understanding what ANA testing really means. We have a favorite quote in this group,

"Knowledge is power." It is our biggest motivator. Most of us have taught our doctors more than

they ever knew about Lupus, its many symptoms, appearances, and levels of pain. Many Rheumies

are unaware that Lupus even causes pain, and are especially ignorant of the LEVELS of pain that

can happen to us.

What, to most people, is a minor inconvenience like a cold virus, can put us in hospital. OR, even

the opposite can be true. Sometimes, if we are in a Lupus flare, any invading germ might not stand

a chance of catching on in our bodies because our immune systems are on the attack for anything,

including US. We are truly medical enigmas, and any INTELLIGENT doctor wouldn't hesitate to

admit there is more that they don't know about Lupus, than they DO know. For people who love

mysteries, we are a true conundrum. (Not sure I spelled that correctly, but you get my meaning.)

Please keep writing and asking questions. Feel free to vent your frustrations, cry, laugh, share a joke,

even share a recipe. We need to keep our spirits up, and our sense of humor working. If, like many

of us you have Sjogren's Syndrome (drying up of moisturizing fluids in eyes, ears, and other places)

you can't spare the moisture, anyway. LOL

Now, a little about me, I live in no. California, about 50 miles from San Francisco, in the heart of

Sonoma wine country. We are a half hour from the Pacific shore, two hours from snow and ski resorts, and right, smack dab in the middle of a volcanic circle with geysers to the north of us, and

an "extinct" volcano to the East. Truly a Pacific Rim area, geographically. We, like Turkey, have

many earthquakes, too.

I have Systemic Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Sjogren's Syndrome, chronic Myfibrositis, Anemia,

chronic Lyme Disease, and non-insulin dependent Diabetes...and now, heart and lung involvement.

It took almost 30 years to get a true diagnosis of my various conditions, and even then, the word

"suspect" was appended to the letters SLE on my medical file until just this last year. Many of us

have gone as long, or longer waiting for a diagnosis. I began having weird symptoms at the age of

ten. I am now 55. So, it's not necessarily true that Lupus is quickly fatal, is it? LOL

Well, enough about me, tell us more about YOU. And, again, welcome to the group. Hugs, MM aka:

Mike, one of the moderators

[Guest guest]

Overwhelming fatique, burning-aching knees and wrists, an

old and rubbish rheumy providing me with Celebrex once a day saying that 1:40 ANA with no pattern info??(no pattern info is provided from

his hospital??) is normal (…they say he is the

best among the 8 of them in the city I live-many of them are in Istanbul, the

hectic big city in Turkey, 12 hours far away from my city Izmir-), no info around,

etc…

But I feel now comfortable knowing that you are somewhere

here on the net. Thanks for your concern and info.

Happy birthday Deanna…

Message: 17

Date: Tue, 06 Apr 2004 20:11:22 -0000

From: " sherrysue616 "

Subject: For New Member Pelin

Hi Pelin,

I just want you to know that you are not alone. My

ANA test came

back at 1:160 with elevated CRP rates and slightly

elevated SED

rates. My doctor had been blaming my joint pain on

other

medications that I was taking. Even with the ANA

has high as it

was, he didn't seem overly alarmed. I guess if

they were

experiencing the pain themselves, they might think

differently about

it!!! Now I am waiting for my appt. with a

rheumatologist on the

26th.

Deanna has posted some very helpful information on

ANA test

results. Just check back a few days on the

messages and you will

find them.

Have you seen a rheumatologist yet? How high was

your SED Rate, CRP

Rate?

I'm sure you'll find this group as helpful as I

have.

Hugs,

Sherry

Message: 16

Date: Tue, 6 Apr 2004 20:43:33 -0400

From: " Deanna "

Subject: ANA test results explained in plain English

ANA test results explained in plain English

ANA (anti-nuclear antibodies) tests .. confusing .. aren't

they? Let me try to explain the process so it is easier to understand.

When the lab tests your blood sample for ANA cells, they

start by taking a couple of droplets of blood and dilute them with another

liquid, usually alcohol.

A result of 1:20 reads 1 to 20 .. or 1 drop of blood to 20 drops of alcohol.

If they see ANA cells, then they dilute it again .. doubling the amount of

alcohol each time.. then they read the results again .. and if they see more

cells, then they dilute it again .. and again .. and again .. until they see a

minuscule amount to no more cells.

So .. 1:20 is usually where they start (remember to read it as 1

to 20) For some reason only known to the phlebotomists (smiles .. the vampires

who draw our blood), on the higher readings such as 1:160 they will leave off

the zero. Not always, but sometimes.

So a reading of 1:16 is really 1:160 .. (1 to 160 = 1 drop of blood to 160

drops of alcohol).

There were so many cells in your blood that it took a

whole lot more alcohol to dilute the sample enough where no cells showed up.

The cells that are " captured " are also put on

a slide and stained with a special concoction of antigens. After the cells have

been stained, they are washed and are then viewed under a fluorescent lighted

microscope. The cells will glow in different stain patterns. The patterns have

been divided into four to

six groups (depending

on the testing facility) and determine what kind of disease correlates to each

pattern.

Example: a reading of 1:160 with a Homogeneous pattern

is almost a definite diagnosis of SLE (lupus).

From a low reading to a high reading:

1:20 = negative

1:40 = very low positive

1:80 = low positive

1:160 = medium positive

1:320 = high positive

1:640 = very high positive

I hope this helped you some.

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[Guest guest]

>Celebrex once a day saying that 1:40 ANA with no pattern info??(no pattern info is provided from his hospital??) is normal

Welcome to the group Pelkin.

When my first labwork was done (sent out by a dermatologist who was trying to help with a rash that had her mystified - she was sure it was lupus but the tests were not definitive), the lab could not detect a pattern. As I had mysterious hard red lumps under the rash, she had sent out tissue samples as well as blood work. The local lab (a pretty good one used by the teaching hospitals here) recommended sending more samples out to a big "world renowned" pathologist in Philadelphia - and he also was stumped. He thought it was likely early stages of changes that would lead to a diagnosis of lupus one the pattern "settled" (which is what the dermatologist had said to begin with - she's very sharp but had only seen one other case like mine in the 25 years she's been in practice). That's exactly what happened.

Sue

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