Calprotectin Level Accurate ?

[Lynda Lynda]

I was just in the Hospital for Crohn's related symptoms.
I now have access through a patient portal for that Hospital system.
Apparently my Calprotectin was checked while at the Hospital.
A year ago it was 522.
This recent test result says only 176.
The Hospital sends the sample to the same Sonora Quest Laboratory system I use for my regular, blood, stool or urine tests.
176 is the lowest it's been in 5 years !!

 

[Stressedmom]

Did they use the first bowel movement of the day? Calprotectin tends to be highest with the first BM of the day I think I read because the stool has been in the gut overnight.

 

[Lynda Lynda]

My stool as taken from the ER or the Hospital room. I can't recall what time of day.

 

[Stressedmom]

Calprotectin can vary A LOT throughout the day, but according to this article (with UC, not Crohn's), first BM may not be highest.

High within-day variability of fecal calprotectin levels in patients with active ulcerative colitis: what is the best timing for stool sampling? - PubMed (nih.gov)