Now that the lab has finally either found Giardia or the antibody to Giardia in my sample I wondered if it were possible for it to have existed for longer than a few week life cycle. Answer:Yes - this could be a chronic condition that looks very much like UC symptoms. I got UC about
7 years ago at age 42 which fits Giardia more than UC.
"There are several rationales as to why Giardia leads to other disorders. One possible mechanism is an
immune or allergic response to the organism. Another possibility is the
release of toxin from Giardia initiating an inflammatory response. Some patients may have a genetic predisposition related to HLA-B27+ status. The introduction of the Giardia antigen into the blood and synovial fluid may result in
T-cell proliferation. A final possible mechanism is an altered intraluminal intestinal state, causing a synergy between gastrointestinal disorders such as IBD or IBS and Giardia growth."
www.giardiasis.org/Complications.aspx"In an effort to better describe the incidence and characteristics of chronic giardiasis in an urban private practice outpatient setting, we reviewed our experience of 65 cases. In the entire group, the
mean duration of symptoms was 1.9 years. "
link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2FBF01347886?LI=true"The worst part is that it is
next to impossible to find Giardia in a stool check. The only time you can tell it is at the cycst cycle which is a very short segment over a 2 week time period."
"Giardia has been growing in frequency across the country not only in dogs, but
in humans (often diagnosed as IBD or Chrohns Disease.)"
www.firstchoicenaturals.com/resourcearticles/dealingwithdiarrheaandgiardiaprotozoa.php"
Pathophysiology The attachment of trophozoites, of which Giardia lamblia causess villus flattening, and inhibition of dissachardidase activities.
Ultimately, the enteric microbiota of the intestine overgrow and may be the cause of further symptoms. This idea has not been fully investigated. The alteration of the villi leads to an inability for nutrient and water absorption from the intestine. This results in diarrhea, one of the predominant symptoms. In the case of asymptomatic giardiasis, there can be malabsorption with or without histological changes to the small intestine. The degree to which malabsorption occurs in symptomatic and asymptomatic cases is highly varied.
Interestingly, the species Giardia intestinalis has proteinases that attack the villi of the brush border and appear to increase crypt cell proliferation and crypt length. Crypt cells existing on the sides of the villi.
On an immunological level, activated host T-lymphocytes attack endothelial cells that have been injured in order to remove the cell. This occurs after the disruption of the tight junctions between endothelial cells that make up the brush border. The result is heavily increased intestinal permeability.There appears to be a further increase in apoptosis by Giardia intestinalis which further damages the intestinal barrier to permeability. There is siginificant up-regulation of the apoptotic cascade by the parasite. Furthermore, substantial down regulation of the anti-apoptotic proteins Bcl-2 and upregulation of the proapoptotic protein Bax. These connections suggest a role of caspase-dependent apoptosis in the pathogenesis of giardiasis.
Giardia protects its own growth by reducing the formation of nitric oxide by consuming all local arginine which is the necessary substrate for the production of nitric oxide. Arginine starvation is known to be a cause of programmed cell death and local removal is a strong apoptotic agent."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giardiasis "For these patients the mean duration of symptoms was 3.3 years We conclude that giardiasis is frequently a chronic disease in our population with symptoms lasting years. "link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2FBF01347886?LI=truePost Edited (aguywithuc) : 2/3/2013 7:45:38 AM (GMT-7)