28.03.2024

Rheumatology test (markers of autoimmune diseases)

Laboratory examination venous blood, which allows to identify the pathological processes of rheumatoid and other systemic diseases, in medicine called raumprobe, or markers of autoimmune diseases.

To autoimmune (systemic) diseases are pathologies in which the immune system “attacks” its own tissues. The immune system produces specific proteins (antibodies), which normally should attack viruses and bacteria, but as a result of failure detrimental impact on the body’s own cells.

It is noteworthy that the more affected its own healthy cells, the immune system produces more antibodies and their attack becomes more aggressive. Speaking in plain language, people with autoimmune disease falls into a vicious circle, so this type of pathology most often occurs in the chronic form.

During raumprobe the doctors can figure out the level of total protein, circulating immune complexes, rheumatoid factor, albumin, uric acid, C-reactive protein and antistreptolysin O.

How to prepare for the study

To obtain the most accurate results, your doctor before taking blood for markers of autoimmune diseases be sure to warn the patient about three important points:

  1. Blood for such studies need to take fasting for 8-12 hours nothing to eat.
  2. The analysis is not to smoke, drink tea (even unsweetened), juice or coffee.
  3. 24 hours before delivery of the analysis it is necessary to reduce physical activity, to eliminate from the diet fatty foods and alcoholic beverages.

If these rules preparation ravnopravan does not comply, then the blood would be meaningless – the reliability of the results is questionable.

Who is a a blood test for rheumatology test

Doctors each patient order laboratory blood testing for markers of autoimmune diseases.

But consider the kinds of analyses indicated in:

Your doctor may order a blood test for rheumatology test only if not already diagnosed with the above pathologies, but also at the stage of suspicion of their development in a specific patient. The aim of the study of blood for markers of autoimmune diseases is early diagnosis of autoimmune pathologies, the assessment of the severity of the patient, and if the diagnosis is already available, and evaluating the effectiveness of treatment.

Total protein: norms and decoding

This term refers to the sum of all proteins that circulate in the blood. These proteins perform a huge number of functions, provide normal immune response, transporterowych various substances to tissues and organs, promote normal blood clotting and others.

Normal amounts of total protein in the blood test for rheumatology test are the following indicators:

  • children under 12 months 46-73 g/l;
  • children aged 12 months to 4 years 61-75 g/l;
  • children aged 8 to 15 years – 58-76 g/l;
  • adults aged 16 to 60 years – 65-85 g/l;
  • adults aged over 60 years is 63-83 g/L.

To improve the results of blood tests at rheumatology test (specifically, the values of total protein) can the following factors:

  • receiving diuretics drugs;
  • medication hormonal groups – for example, hormonal contraceptives, prednisolone or estrogen;
  • peritonitis, extensive burns, vomiting and diarrhea, excessive sweating – these pathological conditions accompanied by fluid loss, which provokes the outcome of raumprobe with a high total protein;
  • receiving asparaginase, ibuprofen, hlorpropamida, phenytoin, allopurinol, isoniazid, and dextran.

The result for total protein may be reduced, which usually provoke starvation, drinking too much of water per day (more than 2, 5 liters), heavy physical work and low-protein diet.

If the results indicate too much total protein, then it can be following reasons:

  1. Acute inflammatory processes. In the first hours of the disease, when the pathological process is in the acute phase, the body fights off viruses and bacteria, that is manifested by increased level of acute-phase proteins. SARS, flu, pneumonia and strep throat can give the current version of the testimony.
  2. Chronic pathology. If the body is leaking the pathological process in the chronic form, then there is increased production of immunoglobulins, which are designed to fight pathogens disease. Bronchitis, tonsillitis, cholecystitis and hepatitis, occurring in the chronic form, can occur in raumprobe increased level of total protein.
  3. Systemic diseases. Naturally, such pathology will necessarily increase total protein, because the immune system is just in incredible quantities produces the modified antibody. Such systemic diseases include scleroderma, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatism and rheumatoid arthritis.

The causes that provoke the decrease in the level of total protein in blood tests for markers of autoimmune diseases:

  1. Poor absorption of protein. It can develop as a result of the progression of gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer, pancreatitis, malignant tumors of the stomach and intestines, enterocolitis or pyloric stenosis. Protein deficiency may be the result of diet, based on the principle of eating food with low protein.
  2. Pathology of the liver. Cirrhosis, liver cancer, amyloidosis or fat lesions on damaged liver cells that leads to inability to synthesize normal amounts of plasma proteins.
  3. Radiation sickness.
  4. Swelling extensive nature. For this pathology proteins from blood liquid come together in the intercellular space. Such swelling may develop on the background of congestive heart failure and/or nephrotic syndrome.
  5. Catabolism. This term denotes the increased resolution of protein, which is associated with an increased/accelerated metabolism. This pathology occurs when the disease Itsenko-Kushinga (there is hypersecretion of steroid hormones) and thyrotoxicosis.
  6. Loss of blood plasma. This happens with extensive weeping eczema and/or extensive burns.

In addition, a lower content of total protein in the blood can be observed on the background of long-term current diseases, when the immune system is already exhausted and unable to produce antibodies. This can happen for example during chronic intoxication.

Albumin standards and the transcript

A protein that is synthesized in the liver, accounts for 55% of all protein fractions in the blood serum. Transportorul albumin, bilirubin, calcium ions and potassium, hormones and maintains the pressure of the blood plasma.

Normal albumin in the analysis of blood for markers of autoimmune diseases are the following indicators:

  • children under the age of 14 – 38-54 g/l;
  • adults aged 14-60 g/l;
  • adults aged over 60 years – 34-48 g/l.

To raise the level of albumin can use vitamin A (retinol), oral contraceptives, diuretics drugs, estrogens, steroid hormones, and dehydration. To reduce the results of Smoking, pregnancy and lactation, a low-protein diet. But these reasons are purely physiological in nature.

The reduction of albumin level in blood tests on rheumatology test may indicate:

  1. The progression of systemic diseases – systemic lupus erythematosus or rheumatic fever.
  2. Loss of plasma in burn disease, peritonitis, trauma, abdominal swelling, and on the background of surgical interventions on the diaphragm, the chest or collarbones.
  3. Renal or cardiac edema.
  4. Diabetic nephropathy, kidney necrosis or ischemia of these paired organs.
  5. Diabetes, viral hepatitis A, b and C, cirrhosis of the liver, benign and/or malignant liver tumors.
  6. Heart failure.
  7. Pancreatitis, cholecystitis, or chronic constipation.
  8. Purulent processes, acute infectious pathologies.
  9. Lymphoma, metastatic bone disease and myeloma.
Rheumatoid factor

The autoantibodies that are produced in the synovial membrane of the joints, so they are most often present in the blood tests on rheumatology test in the development of rheumatic processes. The normal rate rheumatoid factor will be as follows:

  • children under 12 years – of 12, 5 IU\ml;
  • adults above 14 IU\ml.

Please note: generally, in normal, rheumatoid factor should not be measured in the blood, but these figures are out of the norm.

If you do not take into consideration the pathological processes in the body, it increase results age-related changes (for people older than 50 years) or high fat levels in the serum, what happens when you eat large quantities of fatty foods. A lower result can such physiological factors as Giles (excess blood fat) and the drug of the methyldopa.

Pathological reason for high levels of rheumatoid factor include:

  • Sjogren’s syndrome
  • damage to the blood vessels;
  • rheumatoid arthritis;
  • systemic sclerosis;
  • infectious diseases (influenza, measles, rubella, tuberculosis, bacteriological indicardin etiology and syphilis);
  • malignant neoplasms;
  • systemic lupus erythematosus;
  • polymyositis.
The antistreptolysin O: norms and decoding

Under this concept fall the antibodies produced to the toxin beta-hemolytic Streptococcus. Typically, these antibodies can appear in the body after the disease caused by the Streptococcus a sore throat, erysipelas, scarlet fever. It is very important to timely and accurately determine the traces of a streptococcal infection, since she is the cause of rheumatism.

The highest antistreptolysin O is determined in rheumatoid arthritis and in rheumatoid arthritis it is much lower – it helps to differentiate the two diseases because the symptoms they have, as a rule, identical. To improve the result of physical activity, the meal just before taking blood for analysis, existing pathology of the kidneys and the liver, current inflammation purulent character, high level of cholesterol, a reduction in the use of antibiotics and/or corticosteroids.

If the observed increase of antistreptolysin O in the absence of the above physiological reasons, it will address the following pathologies:

  • systemic diseases – glomerulonephritis, rheumatic fever, rheumatoid arthritis;
  • infectious disease provoked by a Streptococcus osteomyelitis, tonsillitis, pyoderma, chronic tonsillitis, and scarlet fever.

Note: in infectious diseases increase the level of antistreptolysin O will be a temporary phenomenon, so the doctors can refer the patient to repeat the tests on rheumatology test in one to two weeks.

C-reactive protein and transcript

This is a plasma protein, its level may increase in inflammatory processes in the body, and it will testify about the course of inflammatory pathologies and acute and chronic (exacerbation). Most often, the increase in C-reactive protein level indicates diseases of bones and/or joints.

Time decay of C-reactive protein is only 6 hours, therefore this indicator perfectly demonstrates the efficacy of the treatment. If repeated study with the specified token was not found in the blood, then we can talk about the recovery process.

Circulating immune complexes

These complexes consist of antibodies and enzymes, which are produced by the immune system. In the case of higher-level components of the complexes accumulate in the tissues of the body and primarily affects the glomeruli. In normal adults, and children for circulating immune complexes should be the indicator of 30-90 U/ml.

The reasons for the increase of these indicators can be:

  • autoimmune diseases, vasculitis, scleroderma, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis and cryoglobulinemia;
  • kidney diseases – glomerulonephritis and lupus nephritis;
  • increased permeability of blood vessels;
  • benign/malignant tumors;
  • infectious processes;
  • allergic reactions.

If the increase of circulating immune complexes is reduced, it has no diagnostic value.

Uric acid

It is a product of purine metabolism, increased level of which indicates the presence of serious diseases. Rules in relation to the content of uric acid in the blood are the following indicators:

  • children under the age of 1 month – 80-311 µm/ml;
  • children 2-12 months of age – 90-372 µm/ml;
  • children aged 12 months – 14 years – 120-362 µm/ml;
  • adult men: 200-480V µm/ml;
  • adult women 140-380 µm/ml.

High level of uric acid indicates the presence of the following pathologies:

But significant reduction in the level of uric acid would indicate the development of AIDS, xanthinuria hereditary nature of diabetes, hepatitis or cirrhosis.

You should know that no doctor made the final diagnosis solely on the blood tests for rheumatology test – results are considered only with regard to General health, presence of symptoms and other investigations. Often in healthy people can be rheumatology test results that don’t match the norm, and patients, on the contrary, can manifest literally in perfect health.

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