Re: Blood test - right panel ordered?

[Guest guest]

Kim,

Those look like the right blood tests. I guess someone is saying

there's some antibody tests missing. Anyway the most conclusive blood

test is the tissue transglutaminase which you had. My doctor ordered

1 antibody test and it was a false negative (and he is a

gastroentologist!) Over a year later I pushed for an endoscopy

because of some symptoms I had from something else and we discovered

that I do have celiac sprue. That is accepted as the only 100%

effective test (although I'm sure there have been cases where it's

difficult to tell). Basically they go down your throat with an

instrument that has a tiny camera and a mechanism to take small

biopsies and then look at them under a microscope. I was told I

didn't need to have a colonoscopy, and although it is a common test

for people with stomach problems it is more helpful in diagnosing

other diseases. I strongly, STRONGLY recommend anesthesia when doing

this test. Not to scare you or anything, I'm sure it's not too bad at

all with anesthesia.

One consideration people often mention about the endoscopy is that if

you test positive, insurance companies will not insure you. Of course

if you have a group health ins. plan and you are not too worried about

having to get an individual plan in the future, you don't have a

problem there. Otherwise, a DNA test can be a helpful test. This

test cannot tell you whether or not you have celiac but it can rule it

out. I believe there's one company that does it and you could find

out more about it on google. I'm not sure if it something you have to

pay out of pocket because I think it is kinda new. Anyhow, I think if

you have a lot of problems you might as well get the endoscopy. Good

luck, there's lot of great resources and food now at least!

Naren

On 1/13/06, k_mccarthy2001 <k_mccarthy2001@...> wrote:

> Hello,

>

> I've been plaqued by series of symptoms for years. I've been

> diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrom (age 16), Endometriosis,

> Polycystic Ovarian Syndrom, on & on. Recently I had a Laperoscopy

> to remove Endotriosis due to severe pain only to disover there

> wasn't any visible endometriosis. During the surgery, the doctor

> was able to see that my bowels were " dialated " . I was referred to

> Dr. Mahadevan in San Francisco. Dr. Mahadevan suggested that I

> might have Celiac Sprue. I have a number of the symptoms (including

> severe " C " , abdominal pain, Acid Reflux, joint pain, migraines).

> She ordered blood work and I'm scheduled for a colonoscopy.

>

> I've been doing my own research since that appointment, and just a

> few minutes ago received a copy of the lab results. I'm curious if

> the right tests were ordered and would appreciate the thoughts of

> the experts who have lived through this process already. I'm so

> happy to find this group!

>

> The panel ordered was:

>

> CBC with Diff & PLT Count

> AST

> ALT

> Bilirubin

> Alkaline Phosphtase

> Albumin

> TSH

> Sedimentation Rate

> Tiss. Transglutaminase

>

> That's it. Any thoughts? Is anyone familiar with Dr. Mahadevan? If

> the lab tests ordered were the right ones, then nothing irregular

> shows up there. (???). Thank you for your help.

>

> Kim

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the responses. I'll be sure to follow up with my doc on

the question of an endoscopy (I'm not sure, will she be doing that

when she does the colonoscopy??). I know that Celiac Sprue is one

of the medical conditions she is exploring. If it is to be truly

explored & eliminated, I want to make sure that it is thoroughly

explored. I'm fortunate to have good group coverage, with other

medical conditions I have, no on would cover me individually as it

is... :-L

> > Hello,

> >

> > I've been plaqued by series of symptoms for years. I've been

> > diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrom (age 16), Endometriosis,

> > Polycystic Ovarian Syndrom, on & on. Recently I had a

Laperoscopy

> > to remove Endotriosis due to severe pain only to disover there

> > wasn't any visible endometriosis. During the surgery, the doctor

> > was able to see that my bowels were " dialated " . I was referred

to

> > Dr. Mahadevan in San Francisco. Dr. Mahadevan suggested that I

> > might have Celiac Sprue. I have a number of the symptoms

(including

> > severe " C " , abdominal pain, Acid Reflux, joint pain, migraines).

> > She ordered blood work and I'm scheduled for a colonoscopy.

> >

> > I've been doing my own research since that appointment, and just

a

> > few minutes ago received a copy of the lab results. I'm curious

if

> > the right tests were ordered and would appreciate the thoughts of

> > the experts who have lived through this process already. I'm so

> > happy to find this group!

> >

> > The panel ordered was:

> >

> > CBC with Diff & PLT Count

> > AST

> > ALT

> > Bilirubin

> > Alkaline Phosphtase

> > Albumin

> > TSH

> > Sedimentation Rate

> > Tiss. Transglutaminase

> >

> > That's it. Any thoughts? Is anyone familiar with Dr.

Mahadevan? If

> > the lab tests ordered were the right ones, then nothing irregular

> > shows up there. (???). Thank you for your help.

> >

> > Kim

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

Hi Kim,

I don't see anti-endomysial antibodies (EMA) on that list. It is the trend for doctors to say you only need the Tissue Transglutaminase (TTG) because it is so accurate, but some of the research I have read suggests that this is not the case. I recommend both TTG and EMA. In any case, the blood tests are only a screening. If symptoms strongly indicate celiac disease, an upper jejunal biopsy (endoscopy) is the medical protocol for diagnosis regardless of the blood test results.

The other thing to know is that the test results will not be accurate unless you are eating gluten at the time.

Pam Newbury Santa Cruz Celiac Support Group 831-423-6904 pknewbury@...

-----Original Message-----From: [mailto: ]On Behalf Of k_mccarthy2001Sent: Friday, January 13, 2006 3:26 PM Subject: [ ] Blood test - right panel ordered?Hello,I've been plaqued by series of symptoms for years. I've been diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrom (age 16), Endometriosis, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrom, on & on. Recently I had a Laperoscopy to remove Endotriosis due to severe pain only to disover there wasn't any visible endometriosis. During the surgery, the doctor was able to see that my bowels were "dialated". I was referred to Dr. Mahadevan in San Francisco. Dr. Mahadevan suggested that I might have Celiac Sprue. I have a number of the symptoms (including severe "C", abdominal pain, Acid Reflux, joint pain, migraines). She ordered blood work and I'm scheduled for a colonoscopy.I've been doing my own research since that appointment, and just a few minutes ago received a copy of the lab results. I'm curious if the right tests were ordered and would appreciate the thoughts of the experts who have lived through this process already. I'm so happy to find this group!The panel ordered was:CBC with Diff & PLT CountASTALTBilirubinAlkaline PhosphtaseAlbuminTSHSedimentation RateTiss. TransglutaminaseThat's it. Any thoughts? Is anyone familiar with Dr. Mahadevan? If the lab tests ordered were the right ones, then nothing irregular shows up there. (???). Thank you for your help.Kim

[Guest guest]

Hi,

I just spoke to my doctor yesterday. I'm a bit confused and

frustrated. I had a colonsopy which showed that my colon is a bit

twisted (tortuos colon was the term). The doctor seemed tick off 1)

relief from " c " with the laxative she'd prescribed and 2) the

tortuos colon and draw a conclusion that there was nothing else to

do. I feel that taking Prevacid twice a day and a laxative daily is

just treating symptoms (and not all of them). When I asked about

Celiac Sprue being fully investigated and ruled out, she said that

the tissue sensitivity test is 98% accurate & the Celiacs generally

have " D " , so that doing a endoscopy would have a low yield. She is

willing to persue it if that is what I want. The doctor's

recommendation following my procedure yesterday was a fiber rich

diet and a daily laxative. A fiber rich diet has never worked for

me. When I pushed a bit, she suggested a CT scan next.

Please, can you let me know if there is enough reason to persue

Celiac as a cause of my difficulties? I have 1) Chronic " c " , 2)

acid reflux 3) abdominal & pelvic pain 4) joint pain (mainly hips &

knees 5)Migrains 6)fatique 7) lower back pain. I appreciate any

feedback.

Kim

> > Hello,

> >

> > I've been plaqued by series of symptoms for years. I've been

> > diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrom (age 16), Endometriosis,

> > Polycystic Ovarian Syndrom, on & on. Recently I had a

Laperoscopy

> > to remove Endotriosis due to severe pain only to disover there

> > wasn't any visible endometriosis. During the surgery, the doctor

> > was able to see that my bowels were " dialated " . I was referred

to

> > Dr. Mahadevan in San Francisco. Dr. Mahadevan suggested that I

> > might have Celiac Sprue. I have a number of the symptoms

(including

> > severe " C " , abdominal pain, Acid Reflux, joint pain, migraines).

> > She ordered blood work and I'm scheduled for a colonoscopy.

> >

> > I've been doing my own research since that appointment, and just

a

> > few minutes ago received a copy of the lab results. I'm curious

if

> > the right tests were ordered and would appreciate the thoughts of

> > the experts who have lived through this process already. I'm so

> > happy to find this group!

> >

> > The panel ordered was:

> >

> > CBC with Diff & PLT Count

> > AST

> > ALT

> > Bilirubin

> > Alkaline Phosphtase

> > Albumin

> > TSH

> > Sedimentation Rate

> > Tiss. Transglutaminase

> >

> > That's it. Any thoughts? Is anyone familiar with Dr.

Mahadevan? If

> > the lab tests ordered were the right ones, then nothing irregular

> > shows up there. (???). Thank you for your help.

> >

> > Kim

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >