After finally getting to see the haematologist this morning (five months of waiting) I felt great that she was lovely, took my symptoms seriously and had MMA and Holo tc tests. On arriving home I realised that it was only six weeks ago that I had my maintenance shot. Will this affect the outcome of the tests? I had stopped all extra supplementation at my last injection, hoping that there would be no interference from them. On reading previous posts it seems that stopping everything for months would be the best option for a more reliable results.
On a better note she did think I needed to be referred to a neurologist for poor memory, pins and needles and the 'dead' legs I get when waking up, so will write to GP. Unfortunately she didn't think they where related to B12 deficiency? I didn't want to 'rock the boat' and nodded in agreement to be referred!
Sometimes it feels like two steps forward and one back! Anyway, just wondering if my injection would impinge on the results are great deal?
Thanks, not sure what I would have done without this forum!
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greenbexy
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Hi Greenbexy. So sorry that your appointment has left you feeling a little deflated.
We all know how bad some GP's are at diagnosing and treating B12 deficiency and unfortunately, some consultants are little better.
Not sure how your Haematologist can be so confident that your neurological symptoms are not due to B12 deficiency. However...
The referral to a neurologist is a good thing. Neurological symptoms can have many causes so at least other potential underlying causes can be investigated and hopefully ruled out. So, if nothing else, it will put you mind rest.
It’s difficult to say whether your B12 injection six weeks prior to the MMA and homocysteine tests will have skewed these tests...we all metabolise B12 at different rates...but it is likely. B12 brings MMA and homocysteine levels down quickly and it can take months (six or longer for some people) for levels to fall back to low or deficient ranges again. So hmm...best wait and see.
If the MMA levels and homocysteine levels are now normal, this does not mean that B12 deficiency is not a problem...it just means that following injections, the levels have returned to 'normal'. So any treatment for B12 deficiency should not be stopped on the basis of these results.
As always, your doctors should be looking at your history and your current symptoms...not serum B12 levels (we all know that these are inevitably raised due to injections and have no bearing on the efficacy of treatment).
Thank you, yes in a much brighter mood today! Even though celebrating my eldest 16th birthday is making me feel rather old!
Well, what will be, will be, if the results are skewed, never mind. I'm starting to accept that I will probably never get any answers and more frequent injections is wishful thinking. At least I will know where to go when I do eventually decide to si!
Oh Greenbexy...more than know what you mean...wait until you have a 33yr old 😉.
About the deficiency...yes, sometimes there just aren't any easy answers as to cause...though why that prevents GP's prescribing according to the guidelines, or prescribing a frequency that gets and keeps us well, who knows 😖.
And yes, plenty of advice and support on the forum if you are forced to go down the SI route.
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First B12 and feeling worse
feeling depressed and disheartened
Feeling really weak
Feeling Unwell Again :-(
