tTG levels

[Pilgrim2310]

Hi all.

My celiac blood results came back as follows.

tTG: 28. Positive is >10

EMA: Weak positive.

Immunoglobulin: 3.65 (normal range is 0.8-2.8)

I've been having the follow symptoms:-

Aching joints

Aching muscles

Headaches

Monthly abdominal pains

And uveitis.

I'm a 39 year old male and am otherwise healthy. I was tested for celiac disease as an infant due to a protruding abdomen. This came back negative. My doctor assures me that I am, without a doubt celiac. As a result, I've been gluten free for a little over 6 weeks. After reading other posts, I've had to insist my GP refer me to a gut doctor, which he has. Appointment to follow. My first question is, are my blood results indicative of celiac disease. Secondly, is uveitis a symptom of celiac disease. And lastly, how long until my symptoms subside?

Thank you all for reading.

[Hidden]

Hi Pilgrim, uvetis/iritis has come up on here before and there seems to be a link between the 2 here's a link to a very informative post on this with a few links, please see:

healthunlocked.com/glutenfr...

Your tTg level does is indeed indicate CD:

<4.0 U/mL (negative)

4.0-10.0 U/mL (weak positive)

>10.0 U/mL (positive)

Now how long before you feel better this is a difficult one and many of us have had different experiences and you have to eliminate ALL gluten to reap the benefits of a gluten free diet. So you have to be careful with some foods classed as gf like oats as coeliac are told not to introduce oats until their villi has recovered and then to introduce them gradually and with medical supervision and then not to eat more than 50g in 24 hours. This is because oats contain a gluten like protein that many coeliac can not tolerate but by limiting the amount keeps the level of oat gluten within the range of codex foods.

You also have to be aware of cross contamination in the home/office and when eating out so just eating gf foods is only the first step and the second is to ensure that your gf food stays gf. So you have to think about not sharing butter/jams etc with a wheatie.

And many of us prefer to have a diet of naturally gf food that we prepare ourselves and avoid many supermarket gf foods that are full of additives. This is also a good idea in the first instance as home made food made from fresh food is much healthier/nutritious.

Me I was diagnosed with severe anaemia and I knew that the anaemia had gone after a couple of months as i just felt so much better.

Lastly you have done the right thing by asking to be referred to a gastro and if you go to the search Healthunlocked box at the top right hand side of the home page you can search previous posts by simply typing in Iritis etc.

Good luck and do keep us informed in how you get on,

Jerry

[Penel]

Hi Pilgrim

Different forms of uveitis appear to be associated with several autoimmune problems, so not necessarily just a symptom of coeliac disease.

Have a look at anterior, intermediate and posterior uveitis if you want more information.

patient.co.uk/doctor/uveitis

I have several flare ups last year, despite being gluten free for many years. The consultant said that they could be triggered by stress, and it had been a particularly stressful year for me. No flare ups this year, so far, fingers crossed.

Hope your symptoms improve soon. As Jerry has said it may be a good idea to avoid all supermarket gluten free foods until you are feeling better. Perhaps have a look at taking a probiotic to help heal your guts.

Good luck with the gastro.

[LynJolly]

Hi - How are your symptoms to date on the gluten free diet? I would have thought your digestion should have settled down by 6 weeks? Other aches and pains usually by about a month? Also there does look to be a relationship between celiacs and uveitis - ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/198...