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ANA blood test positive

I've been on Remicade for roughly 2.5 years. Since my doctor upped my dose from 400mg to 600mg and 8w to 6w I've had bad reactions for first 2 weeks following each infusion(bone/Muscle pain, fatigue etc). My doctor just called saying my ANA blood test came back positive and I'm being sent to a rheumatologist now for further testing. I'm terrified what this means. Any insight?? Could this be nothing?
 
Don't panic yet! Crohns can cause a high ANA, so could arthritis which is common with crohns. This does not mean something horrible is going on. Remicade can make your levels higher around your infusions too. It's something to check up on with rheum but try to stay calm until they give you more answers.
 

Maya142

Moderator
Staff member
It could also be drug-induced Lupus, given that you are having symptoms after Remicade infusions. My daughter got drug induced Lupus while on Entyvio. She had horrible, debilitating fatigue, bad joint pain and a butterfly rash on her face that came and went.

The blood work they did was ANA (which was positive) and anti-histone antibodies (also positive). She does have Ankylosing Spondylitis (has had it for years), which is a type of arthritis associated with Crohn's. So she was already seeing a rheumatologist.

Once the blood work came back positive and her GI and rheumatologist were fairly certain it was drug induced Lupus, they stopped the Entyvio. They said it would take 3-6 months for her to recover. She felt better in about 2-3 months.

The kind of arthritis associated with Crohn's - Spondyloarthritis or Ankylosing Spondylitis - is not usually associated with a positive ANA. It could happen, but your symptoms sound a lot more like drug-induced Lupus to me.
 

Maya142

Moderator
Staff member
I wanted to add - ANA tests can be positive for no good reason at all. So definitely don't panic, but know that drug induced Lupus or arthritis are possibilities. It is good that you are seeing a rheumatologist soon.
 
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