Blood work-elevated liver enzymes

[CathyMe.]

Just heard back from the doctor..good news is that she has ordered all of the tests mentioned above in addition to several others to rule out all forms of hepatitis. BAD NEWS-she wants to refer me back to my lovely GI who was the one who wanted me to just TRY gluten to see what happens and pretty much told me that my inflammatory markers (which kept going up but are now in the normal range) were the result of something other than my MC and suggested that I go back to my PCP. She also was astounded that I took myself off of all my meds and that my symptoms were being controlled right now by diet. And she actually said that she wouldn't be surprised to see me back within 6 months with a return of my GI symptoms!! I think I will put my foot down and suggest that I see another GI. Anyways...thanks again!

[CathyMe.]

Went and gave my 6 vials of blood this morning and I should hear back results tomorrow. I will update you all when I hear back. Positive thoughts that my results were just a false positive and my liver enzymes have gone back down!!!

[Zizzle]

Good luck to you and your precious liver!!

[CathyMe.]

So, some of my results are back. No Hepatitis A,B, or C. The test for Autoimmune Hep. will be back today as will the muscle antibodies tests. The good news is that my liver enzymes have lowered but my White blood cell count continues to be very low. She is going to wait until the other liver tests come back and then refer me to a hematologist. Her thoughts are that there is likely, "something infectious that is attacking your body".

The other good news is that my BM continue to be amazingly normal, even with the stress of these health concerns and the end of the school year!

Anyone have similar issues and been to see a hematologist?

[Zizzle]

My white count was low but not dangerously low, according to my rheumatologist. I have 2 theories about my autoimmunity. I think it was either triggered by mononucleosis in my teens, which permanently alters your immune response and leaves you with Epstein Barr Virus floating around, OR the 3-series Hepatitis B vaccine I had in my early 20s as a healthcare worker set things in motion. Of course pregnancies, antibiotics, gluten and other exposures really got the ball rolling. Did you happen to have mono or Hep B vaccine?

[CathyMe.]

That's interesting. I have not had mono but I did have the Hep B vaccine several years ago due to the fact that I work with children with significant disabilities.

[Zizzle]

Just saw this report today about Hep B vaccine response in people with celiac disease versus infants and healthy controls. Turns out your HLA type may play a role in your response to the vaccine. I have a celiac gene (HLADQ2), which may explain why I tested negetive for Hep B antibodies when I was pregnant, despite being vaccinated. Notice infants also have a poor response to the vaccine, which is another reason why I opted out of the vaccine series for my daughter. There is no point and she won't be at risk for many years!

http://www.celiac.com/articles/23298/1/ ... Page1.html

[CathyMe.]

Received the rest of the results back from my blood work-no Autoimmune Hep., and all of my liver function tests are normal now. She feels that my WBC is low due to my body fighting off an infection on it's own. Interesting thing Zizzle, she has asked me several times if I have ever had mono, which I have not. I'm going to have more blood drawn in a month just to make sure everything is okay.

[tex]

Thanks for the update.

Tex

[Zizzle]

That's great news. If she's willing and suspicious, maybe she'll be willing to order an Epstein Barr Virus antibody titer, just to see if there is any correlation. You may not have had mono asa teen, which may mean you had EBV as a kid, and it lives in you forever. Stress and compromised immunity could reactivate it. 95% of us carry it, so it's not unique, but I'm convinced it plays a role in autoimmunity. We already know it can cause lymphomas and other cancers.