Lab results, Im confused..

Katie, How does saliva testing tell about Hashi? There are a couple of blood tests that test Thyroglobulin (and there are other words I don't remember) . . . but I've not heard of saliva for this. The ANA shows positive and the Anti Nuclear Antibodies (ANA) Titer is 160 (that is your number). There are a couple of ways to report the antibody titer, but I really don't know in that type of report what is a low positive and what is a high positive. This blood work is a "snap shot" at one particular moment. Often the doctor will watch for a pattern over a period of time when there is a mildly elevated or lower number. She actually did offer you the one thing that any Rheumy would start with IF they did suspect a connective tissue disease like Lupus . . . the plaquenil. You may opt to refrain from meds until you see the rheumy . . . it depends on how severe your symptoms are. Take a deep breath and don't panic about this. OK? Yes . . . an undertreated thyroid could cause a lot of your symptoms. Is the TSH any better? A doctor needs to combine the TSH readings with some others (like C3 and C4) and this should be monitored by a doctor who has experience with the thryoid (endocrinologist). Keep pushing for specific answers to specific questions and keep an ongoing list of symptoms which will be presented to each doctor at each visit. Did you get the referral yet?? Do you have a husband, mother, father, brother who might attend dr. appointments with you to help facilitate some progress?? *sighhhhh* I'm sorry I don't have more help to offer you? Did we ask you in the other string if you've had any bloodwork for myositis??? Blessings!

Hi Katie, welcome to the board.  I am sorry to hear you are having such problems.  The dx process can be very exhausting, unfortunaltey there is not one test to dx it so the doctor has to put the puzzle together one piece at a time.  Plaquenil is not used with just lupus, do you have joint pain, etc?  If so your doctor may suspect some sort of UCTD and that is how it's treated.  What other kind of lupus symptoms do you have and for how long? 

I was dx with lupus with a positive ANA, SED, SSA, low C3 & a ton of symptoms but it took a couple of years and a couple of rheumy's.  I am not sure if lupus makes your potassium, etc low but I do know it can affect your WBC, RBC, etc. 

I also have Hashi's and have never heard of the saliva testing.  I was dx with the thyroid antibody test Rosie mentioned with a normal TSH, T3 & T4.

I sure hope you get some answers soon!  Take care

I don't have many symptoms. I am just wondering how I can have such a high ANA and High ESR rate and have no symptoms and have no positive blood tests. I have been tested for almost everything. -Honeycomb

Thank you. Ye, I have a fianze whom attends appointments with me, but he doesnt understand how i can feel so yucky and look normal. Often times, I get called lazy, he just doesnt realize that I simply cannot do it.
I found out about the hashi's through ZRT labs, they offer the saliva test, but it was a blood spot test specifically. Sorry to confuse you.
The probelm for me has been finding a doctor whom doesnt blow me off. I've been to an endo...the one whom did the RAI for me in the past for my ''graves"', and he told me the ONLY labs that matter were the TSH and T4...Right then I knew what kind of a jerk he really was.

Whats the C3 and C4? I've never heard of this?

And now, with this primary whom has diagnosed me with this lupus, I went back to her for the 2nd follow up, mentioned the no appointment yet for the rheumy...she said she'd get right on it, and now its been another 3 days and still no appointment. Keep in mind, it had been 4 weeks imbetween appointments. So now approaching 5-6 weeks with now referral appointment I'm getting FED up. Aside from that when I was in there, she refused to do blood work again because I hadn't started the plaquilnol. I mentioned some other symptoms, like that of hypoglycemia, and she blew them off saying thhat was just me. Im thinking that because she ''thinks'' I have lupus, its not going to be easy to get her to look into anything else. I mentioned how I've got the antibodies for hashi's, got saliva testing done and it showed low cortisol as well as hormonal imbalances...and she suggested putting me on birth control and a baby asprin!! I need something to striaghten out my hormones...it shows an estrogen dominance with extremely low DHEA, testosterone, and lower progesterone because of the estrogen dominance.

I just don't know what to do or where to look for doctors, it seems like they all blow me off. I think she's putting me on the back burner until I get to the Rhuemy, and im trying to wait it out, but if I don't get the appointment set , here next week I will go into her office and NOT leave until they set the appointment. Something rash!
I've been through this for 3 years already.
My symptoms are similar to that of thyroid, especially hashi's, and its frustrating because not a lot of docs treat hashi's or even believe that its real.
Im on the T4 and I think I've got conversion problems because I've got really high reverse t3.
If anyone knows a doc in MI who handles autoimmunity well...please send it my way.
Thanks all.
Katie

Greetings, Katie! Rosie gives some great advice. Doctors are only human and do not know everything. If you do have anything autoimmune, the plaquenil will be helpful. It does take the plaquenil about 6-8 months to completely get into your system.

This is a good time to start the plaquenil since it can take 3-5 months to get in to a good rhuemy for an appointment. The rhuemy will, most likely, do the additional blood work and will probably order x-rays and take a urine sample. Do you have a low-grade fever, a red rash across your nose and cheeks, extreme fatigue? These are signals to your doctor that it could be auoimmune.

Your fiance is nice to go with you but, like Rosie said, you need to have someone with you who is 100% behind you. Lupus is very hard to diagnose and a feature of it is that the patient looks healthy but feels awful. My own diagnosis took over three years for confirmation and it was exhausting.

Can you make your own rhuemy appointment or does the doctor need to refer you for your insurance? Please feel free to email me if you want the name of a good rhuemy in the Jackson, Michigan area.

My prayers are with you!

Thank you. I need to get my hands on what ''shape'' the positive ANA was, they gave me a copy of my results, and that wasnt in there, so Im doubting she looked that far into it. She's only a DO. She actually had the nerve to prescribe me brith control when I complained of feeling AWFUL during my period...and birth control is a NO NO for those whom have lupus. At least according to the lupus society brochures it is now because of recent research related to estrogen. Which makes sense that I have it, with my adrenal fatigue, my hormones have been out of wack for 3 years now, its a no wonder my body ended up this bad.