CRP and calprotectin tests...anyone had them?

[Mrslwag]

So after plucking up courage to see the dr with my symptoms I had some bloods and a stool sample taken a couple of weeks ago. Not sure what bloods were done but I got a letter asking for me to make an appointment to discuss (it said no cause for concern, and the fact they couldn’t get me in until next week reassures me otherwise they would’ve got me in sooner??) I found out by persistently asking that my CRP levels are just outside of normal range.. has anyone else had this? The calprotectin hasn’t come back yet, but again had anyone had the test? What happened next? I’m terrified of what they’re going to tell me next week 😕

[Linley]

If your GP has given you the full set of blood tests for elimination processes these would have included anaemia and celiac , vit levels etc. If your CRP levels are slightly out no cause for alarm especially if your GP has not asked to see you straight away. Please do not be terrified as if it was something serious your GP would have seen you by now. Let us know how you get on

[Mrslwag in reply to Linley]

Thankyou, I’ll let you know on Tuesday x

[Marathoner]

Hi Mrslwag...a couple years ago I went through the battery of tests. Calprotectin was one of them. My bloods came back normal, but my calprotectin was off the charts, well, to me anyway. Normal range is 50 or below. My readings came back like 480 something. I knew there was something wrong. My symptoms were at their worst and this was well into a year of constant IBS-D. CONSTANT! We're talking having to go D 6 or 7 times either in the middle of the night or right away in the morning before eating anything, and throughout the day of course. Small amounts of blood on toilet paper after the 3rd or 4th time. Felt like my soul was being flushed down the toilet every time. It sucked the life out of me. I did the colonoscopy (2nd one by age 30) and the other that goes down your esophogus into your stomach (can't remember the name of it, ugh). Also had MRI's done to check organs. Everything came back with good results, except for possible lesions on my liver which doc chalked up to being nothing. Doc did a second Calprotectin reading, and it was 54, back to normal range a month later. I was ultimately diagnosed with post-infectious IBS-D. This means I caught a bug or some virus somewhere (? can't think of anything for the life of me that I ate or did or went) and it screwed up my digestion and it did not go back to normal. My colon rhythm is off...or spastic colon as I'm sure you have heard once or twice. Here I am 3 years later and still experiencing the same symptoms. Nothing has gotten better, except the intensity of the stomach aches I guess. Surprisingly I got a letter from the doc that did my colonoscopy and he said I did not have to schedule another until I hit my 50's! I am no longer worried about my issues. In fact, the more time that goes by, the more normal having IBS-D seems as more and more people are seemingly coming to the surface of this issue. Mrslwag, I really would not worry. It seems scary as heck right now, especially how our doctors word things in technical terms. I can't begin to tell you all the thoughts that went through my head when I jumped online and read my own results after tests that were done through the hospital. Lesions on my liver!? Really?! and then it's nothing Good luck to you and I hope you can walk away from your appointments a little bit optimistic. The one thing that has saved me over and over again is loperamide. Simple solution for short term relief. Also, if you are having a really crampy stomach, I have found just 5mg (half a pill of my back muscle relaxers-cyclobenzaprine 10mg) really help. I have only done that a couple times when I am at my wits end. Please let me know what you find out and your calprotectin levels. P.s....Calprotectin testing is checking the protein levels in your intestines that fight off bad bacteria and infections and such....the higher the reading, the more work your intestines are doing to keep you well and the worse "infection" you have. I have seen people report this number into the thousands on other sites.

[Mrslwag in reply to Marathoner]

Hi marathoner, just thought I would update you. So two of my bloods came back slightly elevated, not enough to be a medical emergency but enough to raise awareness. Calprotectin still hasn’t come back so until then diagnosis is inconclusive. They are doing my bloods again to make sure it wasn’t a blip and hopefully the calprotectin will be back by then. If both come back elevated they are referring me to gastro for further investigation. Interestingly my worse symptoms have subsided since seeing the GP, and although I’m almost certain there’s something going on, it seems to be the case that I subconsciously worry about GP visits too which makes things so much worse.

[Marathoner in reply to Mrslwag]

Thanks for the update. Curious why it's taking so long for the calprotectin. I think mine only took around 3 or 4 days. I suppose each lab does it's own thing. I can not give you advice on the bloods, as I have not had bad readings. Knock on wood. I've been doing some reading up and it seems that elevated calprotectin levels above 50 indicate IBD vs IBS. Although I had a reading of into the 400's, my doc assured me it wasn't IBD as I did not have any inflammatory markers in my guts themselves during colonoscopy and endoscopy. I would be willing to bet they will have you do a colonoscopy if anything. Well, keep me updated! Good luck!

[Mrslwag]

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my post and respond! I’m really trying to be positive about tomorrow’s trip to the GP! Fingers crossed, I’ll let you know how it goes

[Marathoner in reply to Mrslwag]

Hi Mrslwag! I was just reading up on some old posts and found this one. How have you been getting along? What did your calprotectin come back at???

[Mrslwag in reply to Marathoner]

Hi Marathoner! It came back at 306.

I’ve since had a colonoscopy and now awaiting results of the biopsies taken, it was 5 weeks ago now so getting impatient! Symptoms seem to come and go, varies from one week to the next, from day to day even some weeks 😕

[Marathoner in reply to Mrslwag]

Oh man! So you definitely had something going on there. As aweful as it is to say, those numbers coming back wacky shows the doctors that we aren't just having a tummy ache. There really is something bad happening. Good luck with your colonoscopy test results. I too had biopsies taken and they came back fine. A very small amount of irritation but hardly any to account for anything. Funny how the gut can feel so horrible but there is no damage being done.

[Mrslwag in reply to Marathoner]

I don’t understand the notes on the report but they told me they could see patches of redness which is where they took biopsies, but everything else looked normal. Just want to know what the craic is so I can move on with my life. It’s all in my head. It don’t feel I can move on til I get answers 🙄

Would just be nice to eat normally and not feel like I either need to poop horrifically or put up with awful stomach cramps

[Marathoner in reply to Mrslwag]

Hmmm...sounds like IBD vs IBS now. Irritation usually is a marker for IBD. That can be worse than IBS and, if I'm not wrong, can develop into other digestive issues. Interesting. However, it could be what I went through with my "liver lesions". I'm guessing you have a follow-up appointment with your doc to discuss the findings? Man, I shoulda been a doctor.

I know the feeling. Everything I eat causes some level of stress. God forbid you are away from home for a meal, right?!

Regardless of what the technical terms are, this is definitely a DISEASE, not SYMPTOM.