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ANA test follow up results - anyone else experience this

Posted by saw2019 @saw2019, Jun 26 1:32pm

Hello all

I received an abnormal ANA test result in February after meeting with a medical provider for fatigue, joint and muscle pain (among some other things that came and went, not sure they are related). I finally had an appointment with a rheumatologist this week who did further testing for ANA. My titer came back as 1:320 and a speckled pattern. All other blood work has come back normal. At this point I am waiting things out, meeting again with rheumatologist next month and she is having me try prednisone to see if my body reacts positively. My question is, has anyone else been in this situation? She told me there is potential I am in early stages of connective tissue disease but there is not enough to fully diagnose. I struggle with unknowns so just looking for others experiences. Thank you!

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sunshine67 | @sunshine67 | Aug 10 3:58pm

Margotcc:
Please use caution taking Leflunomide…prescribed to me by Rheumatologist as worked very well with my disease, except gave me high blood pressure, normally have low bp. At Endo dr visit, bp so high dr immediately told me to stop taking! My bp returned to low bp one week later off the Leflunomide.
Please regularly check your blood pressure.

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pm56 | @pm56 | Aug 11 11:02am
In reply to @pm56 "Yes - unfortunately it’s not uncommon to get a positive ANA and everything else looks fine...." + (show)
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Yes - unfortunately it’s not uncommon to get a positive ANA and everything else looks fine. It can sometimes take a few years for antibodies to show up. It took 25 years for me to finally arrive at a rheumatologist after years and years of terrible low back pain that turned out to be inflammatory. Orthopedists, sports medicine doctors, physiatrists, etc., often ran a CRP or ESR test (inflammatory markers) which looked fine, but it wasn’t until someone ran a RF test in 2019 that we finally figured out it was autoimmune in nature. Autoimmune disease is infuriating as it can take time to show up, but meanwhile you may be symptomatic. Even more annoying, the results can change over time as well. For years I was negative for ANA. Then two years ago I was positive. Now I’m negative again but with a positive antibody for MCTD, which left me confused and unsure of what that meant long term. My rheumatologist essentially said, “don’t worry - long term it doesn’t mean much as I focus on treating your symptoms as they are now - not your diagnosis or your labs.” That sounds like what your rheumatologist is doing. She’s not focusing on your labs and your lack of antibodies - she’s trying a dose of steroids to see how you feel. If you feel better, she’ll have a good indication that your immune system might be the problem regardless of what the labs say. There are patients who are considered “seronegative” who don’t have, for example, RA antibodies, or who ultimately wind up falling into an “undefined connective tissue disease” diagnosis. Sounds like you have a receptive rheumatologist as she didn’t just send you off with a “nothing I can do for you.” Hopefully you’ll get more answers. 😊

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Sorry, I just re-read what I wrote and realized I meant to write *undifferentiated CTD not undefined! 😊

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