At age 58 I had a sudden onset pulmonary embolism (PE) in February 2021 that was (most likely) due to a knee subluxation suffered five weeks prior to the PE. I got great care at my hospital emergency room and intensive care unit, which included an intravenous clot-buster. I took Eliquis for six months, and it took me 12- to 18-months to get back to full strength. During that time I was having blood tests done and my cardiolipin antibody IgM was moderately high (16.4 in the emergency room and 33.0 in November 2022). In those same blood tests, my cardiolipin antibody IgG was in the normal range. Due to the moderately high IgM level, my hematologist put me on Eliquis, which I have been taking since November 2022.
In recent blood tests (July 2023 and October 2023), my cardiolipin antibody IgM levels were at the low end of the normal range (< 1.5 in both tests); however, my cardiolipin antibody IgG levels skyrocketed from the normal range in 2021 and 2022 to 109.2 (July 2023) and 107.8 (October 2023).
From those results, my hematologist diagnosed me with antiphospholipid syndrome and asked me to add a 81-mg aspirin to the Eliquis I am taking.
Otherwise, other "usual" blood tests (CBC, CMP) are normal, with one exception, and blood clotting tests done in December 2021 (in which I was not taking a blood thinner) were in the normal range, and blood clotting tests done in October 2023 revealed slower-than-normal blood clotting, which is not surprising given that I am taking Eliquis and a baby aspirin.
The one "exception" to my usual blood tests is that I have chronically low levels of lymphocytes. A lymphocyte subset panel blood test was done in October 2022 and July 2023. Those results showed below-normal levels of the various lymphocytes (CD3, CD4, CD8, CD19). So this gave me a diagnosis of lymphopenia. Neither my primary care physician nor the hematologist seem too concerned with the low levels of lymphocytes.
Otherwise, I am healthy and have no symptoms of illness. I am a White male who is a nonsmoker, nondrinker, vegetarian, and I am not overweight (BMI of 22).
Despite no physical symptoms, the diagnosis of antiphospholipid syndrome (along with lymphopenia) has impacted my mental outlook and dimmed my optimism as I head into retirement.
To pose a question, can I expect my cardiolipin antibody IgG levels to decrease to a normal level (or at least a moderately high level) at some point?
I am just wondering since my cardiolipin antibody IgM levels went from a moderately high level to a normal level over a 2-year, 8-month period. Can one expect the cardiolipin antibody IgG levels to do the same?