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Hi folks!
I'm back with request for more assistance! This time trying to get a 
handle on significance, [if any?] of my son's immunoglobulin level results.

In our ongoing quest to get to root of what's still going on with 
him, our GP ordered a series of blood tests last March. Showed his 
folate and calcium were low [no surprise there], his IgA was low [I 
already asked the list about that - turns out he does make some just 
not enough by ref. range], and what I did not know at the time was 
that his IgM was also low and his IgE was elevated.

Tests were repeated in September and since the lab screwed up and did 
not do complete series, she repeated everything in November. Results 
showed [only listing those relevant to query]:

IgA up slightly to 0.6;  was 0.58 in Sept. & 0.48 in March [ref. 
range 0.69-3.3]

IgG normal at 10.8 [I didn't note ref range since it was OK]

IgM low at 0.38; down a tad from Sept at 0.39 [don't have ref range 
but seem to recall reading IgM is small % of others?]

IgE going higher: was 301 in March, 365 in November [ref range 0-200]

AnA [? think that's right - autoimmune antibodies] was negative.

I'm pretty sure his basophil and eosinophil levels were checked but 
doctor didn't say they were outside of normal and I forgot to ask.

Thankfully his folate and calcium are going up, which means that 
after 3 years of restricted diet from CD & other intolerances, he is 
finally able to absorb nutrients! YAYYYY!!!!!

I initially thought his Ig results might be from malnutrition but if 
that was true would expect them all to be going up, whereas IgM is 
going down, though not much but is not going up.

On the surface his elevated IgE suggests environmental allergies but 
he has had no symptoms of those since shortly after going on new 
diet. When he was younger the pediatrician was sure he had severe 
allergies because of chronic sinus problems but the allergist seemed 
to think symptoms were more related to possible recurrent infection 
[Ig levels were not checked however]. He had almost  constant 
problems with swollen lymph nodes. Also, antihistamines have never 
done anything to relieve his sinus symptoms. His brother does have 
severe allergies so I also was not convinced this was *his* primary 
problem based on differences between them.

I understand elevated IgE can be from parasitic infection but that's 
been checked a few times now and has always been negative.

I do think his IgA going up may be related to his taking bovine 
colostrum, the only one of the many things we've tried which seems to 
be of significant help [thanks to list members for suggesting that!]

Another thing which I'm wondering about as an indication of longterm 
immunodeficiency is that he had a severe reaction to his HIB 
vaccination when he was young. Required adrenaline injection but 
doctors at emergency didn't mention anything about possible 
immunodeficiency as cause so nothing further was done about it. His 
lung function tests done a few years ago showed slight obstruction 
but nothing definitive as to why [not asthma related].

Last March was the first time his Ig levels were checked so we don't 
know if this has been an issue for a while or is temporary thing. My 
sense is that our GP thinks its been longterm - might explain why his 
tTg was low relative to severity of his symptoms.Our GP is trying to 
consult with the allergist/immunologist again but no word yet, and 
it's been almost a month. I did call last week and her receptionist 
said she'd get back to me if/when there was further word - I'm just 
finding it hard to be patient, especially when I don't know whether 
this is all significant or not!

I guess that's the crux of my query today. Based on experience some 
of you have had, do my son's results suggest anything needing to be 
followed up or should I be content to take a wait and see approach? 
I've not been able to find out much about IgM other than its basic function.

Should we try my son on antihistamines even though he has no symptoms 
of allergies, as a way of determining whether his increasing IgE is 
allergy-related? Don't really want to give him medication if not 
needed. Would he necessarily have allergy symptoms if allergies were 
the problem?

His symptoms are still gut related, as well as "brain fog", 
difficulty with short-term memory and concentration. He does sneeze 
once every few days but  that's it for anything that would suggest 
allergies as far as I can tell [I think he may have very mild 
allergies as pretty well everyone in my family is atopic - just don't 
think it's a significant issue for him so wonder if it explains IgE levels].

Suggestions, guidance, advice greatly appreciated! Aggi-Rose

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