What does IBD Serology test for?

[Saralr]

I haven't been diagnosed with Crohn's yet. I saw a physician's assistant at the GI office I go to. She thought I may have celiac and scheduled me for a colonoscopy and the upper one too. The doctor at the office did the procedures and showed me pictures after. He removed a few polyps and took a biopsy of the inflamed areas I have. He was fairly certain it was Crohn's and showed me the signs in the pictures he had.

That was Monday. Today the receptionist called to tell me that none of the polyps were cancerous (hooray) and that now the PA I see wants me to have an IBD Serology blood test done. The results take 2-3 weeks and then I can have a follow up appointment.

I've read that they may not be reliable and insurance doesn't always cover the test. So I'm wondering what the purpose of the test is. What exactly are they testing for? The receptionist was really only calling to schedule the test. She wasn't able to explain the purpose of the test to me in a way I understood.

 

[valleysangel92]

Sorry I've missed this. I'm not fully sure what this test looks for, I don't think its very commonly used in the UK, or at least, not by my doctors, generally my blood tests are used to look for signs of inflammation in the body, including an elevated CRP level.

I looked up the serology test and the prometheus labs website suggests that this type of test may help determine which type of IBD you are dealing with, which can be difficult from just visual appearances. Understanding which type of IBD you are dealing with is important because this can make a vast difference in the treatments that will be most effective and possible complications long term.

I would suggest asking your doctor about other blood tests such as vitamin checks as well, which can show if you are becoming deficient in any of the important nutrients and can give an indication of undernourishment which can cause a range of symptoms in itself.

 

[edcolumbiaMD]

ask for an IBD EXPANDED PANEL test

AMCA
ALCA
ACCA
ASCA

see what comes back......

 

[Essieluv]

Just a heads-up: I had a serology done after I was diagnosed with severe peri-anal Crohn's and the result said that I didn't have any type of IBD. My colorectal surgeon said that was complete nonsense, and the test is not always reliable. But, when it is correct it can be a great tool for making sense of digestive diseases.

 

[edcolumbiaMD]

what were your makers for all beig a crohns person im sure you saved all your paper work

what were your results
AMCA
ALCA
ACCA
ASCA

 

[Saralr]

All my blood tests came back normal. The biopsy from my colonoscopy showed signs of chronic inflammation and my GI said it was patchy. He said it looked like Crohn's so we're ignoring the blood tests and treating for Crohn's. So far I think I'm getting better.

Not sure why they bothered doing the Serology if they're ignoring it, but at least I'm getting treated for the inflammation.

I wasn't able to open the file with the actual results so I'm getting a copy next time I go in.