My IgG for Mycoplasma Pneumonia was very high. I scored a 342. Negative is less than 100. Indeterminate is 100 - 320. Positive is greater than 320.
IgM was negative with less than 770.
There is some verbiage under the IgG results stating "The reference interval established in intended as a basline only. Values ?100 may indicated a recent infection with My coplasma pneumoniae and need to be confirmed either by a positive IgM result and /or additional specimen drawn 2-4 weeks later showing a significan increase in antibody levels."
Anyone know what this means?
No word yet from LLMD. I don't think I really have many symptoms.
I've been off all meds now on a break for 2.5 weeks and actually feel pretty good (although not 100%).
[ 01-09-2012, 04:36 PM: Message edited by: bcb1200 ]
Posted by TF (Member # 14183) on :
Hey, bcb. I think you have a few typos in the verbiage under the IgG results. I expect that you meant to say:
"The reference interval established IS intended as a basline only. Values GREATER THAN 100 may indicate a recent infection with Mycoplasma.... "
If this is what the test results say, then what it is saying is that people with an IgG of greater than 100 may also have myco. Theirs could be a recent infection. They need to get retested in a few weeks or need to have a positive IgM to confirm that they do have myco with an IgG score of greater than 100.
Posted by bcb1200 (Member # 25745) on :
Thanks TF. Yes...autocorrect at it's finest is responsible for the typos.
Yes...I understand the comments. But I was wondering if it was IDSA spin or legit. (very similar comments were on my positive lyme test from Quest.)
I was hoping for some people with the same result to chime in with comments from their LLMD's.
Posted by jackie51 (Member # 14233) on :
I wish I knew the answer to your question. Both myself and my kids have sky high IGG. More like over 1400 for one of us.
I've been told that it takes 6 6-week cycles of treatment to get rid of this. What I can not seem to understand is if there are 3 tests, never a positive Igm, just these really high IGGs, does it matter?
Posted by Catgirl (Member # 31149) on :
jackie, I don't think it matters. I got my test done at Quest (mine was high too--IGG, EIA). It says: "A positive result indicates that the patient has antibody to Mycoplasma. It does not differentiate between an active or past infection. The clinical diagnosis must be interpreted with the clinical signs and symptoms of the patient."
Well, this is what Burrascano says about it on page 5:
"Frequent exposures to Mycoplasmas are common, resulting in a high prevalence of seropositivity, so the best way to confirm active infection is by PCR."
Thanks Keebler. My tests were via Labcorp as I was also getting an updated CD-57. So..if I can test positive on crappy Labcorp, imagine my results on someone better!
I'm not sure if Mycoplasma is a factor any longer, but suspect CPN is given my reaction the last time I tried Rifabutin. My WBC tanked to a 1.6, which Dr. Stratton (on CPN Help) believe is a direct result of the Rifabutin killing the CPN in the WBC. (the WBC then goes on to die quickly as it has been hijacked and kept alive by the CPN for far too long.) I also had some burning and discomfort in my lungs after starting Rifabutin.
Posted by jackie51 (Member # 14233) on :
My llmd gets the deer in the headlights look when we discuss mycoplasma and/or strep. I sure wish someone could decipher mycoplasma IGG. Nicholson's site is too overwhelming for me.
Could an elevated IGG for mycoplasma p. result from mold exposure, i.e. specifically aspergillus/penicillan. Had elevated readings for that, up to 28 times outside exposure.
Posted by momintexas (Member # 23391) on :
I'll throw in my 2 cents worth from what I understand about high IgG only. I'm not a medical professional - just someone who has been dealing with myco p for far too long.......
From what I have been told, it can mean a few things:
If you only have high IgG and are still not well, it could indicate a chronic ongoing infection and your body is just not making a response to it to trigger an IgM response.
If you are only slightly higher on IgG, it could simply mean a recent exposure, but if your numbers are very high, it's more likely there's an ongoing infection and needs to be addressed.
Go by your symptoms - if you are not well, and you have very high IgG's - that could be your answer.
bcb1200 - maybe have the test redone in another month or so to see if that # rises.
[ 01-13-2012, 09:59 AM: Message edited by: momintexas ]
Posted by momintexas (Member # 23391) on :
Oh and also - the IgG side of myco p takes even longer to drop. If you once were + on IgM and IgG, it can take a year or so for the IgG's to finally drop back off once you are no longer + on IgM.
But, If your IgG # doesn't drop or even rises.....you likely have something running around in the background.
Posted by jackie51 (Member # 14233) on :
In six months, one kid had IGG that went from 1400 to 1800. Fatigue is biggest issue, though it does seem to be resolving.
Posted by momintexas (Member # 23391) on :
Yes, fatigue is horrible with myco p - and from what I understand, one of the last symptoms to go......
Posted by susank (Member # 22150) on :
Seems to me the Labcorp test is "better" than Quest as it shows numbers/values i/o "greater than".
My last MyP test showed IGG around 700. Higher than test from three months prior.
Do values correlate with symptoms/fatigue?
What are the most common symptoms of Myp?
Posted by momintexas (Member # 23391) on :
"Symptoms The signs and symptoms of Mycoplasma infection are highly variable and thus it is not uncommon for a diagnosis to be entirely missed. A partial list of symptoms includes chronic fatigue, joint pain, intermittent fevers, headaches, coughing, nausea, gastrointestinal problems, diarrhea, visual disturbances, memory loss, sleep disturbances, skin rashes, joint stiffness, depression, irritability, congestion, night sweats, loss of concentration, muscle spasms, nervousness, anxiety, chest pain, breathing irregularities, balance problems, light sensitivity, hair loss, problems with urination, congestive heart failure, blood pressure abnormalities, lymph node pain, chemical sensitivities, persistent coughing, eye pain, floaters in the eyes, and many others."
Posted by momintexas (Member # 23391) on :
"Mycoplasmas can also disrupt the normal orchestration and organization of the host�s immune system. They can cause lymphocytes (white blood cells that bear the major responsibility of the immune system) to secrete inflammatory cytokines (proteins that facilitate cell-to-cell communication), which leads to swelling, inflammation and either stimulation or suppression of the immune system. "
"Mycoplasma are a group of microorganisms which are a cross between a virus and a bacteria. Together with Chlamydia and Rickettsia they make up a family of microorganisms known as Rickettsiae and Pararickettsiae. They are found everywhere, the hosts are usually rodents and the vectors are arthropods (insects with jointed legs) or airborne through dust. Rickettsial organisms have been found in ticks, lice, fleas, mites, meat, milk, stool and dust.
They are the smallest free living organisms. Like viruses, they are intracellular organisms but unlike viruses, they can reproduce outside cells. They lack a cell wall which makes them resistant to many antibiotics. They enter the body through skin, lungs or digestive system. They then spread through the bloodstream to infect vascular endothelium. They multiply within cells until numbers are so great that the cells burst. This then damages blood flow to multiple organs, hence the multitude of symptoms which may occur.
Research by Dr Cecile Jardin (a French surgeon now based in South Africa and specialising in the treatment of chronic fatigue) has shown that the most common symptoms of chronic mycoplasma type infections include:
Symptoms are caused by the release of 3 types of toxins into the blood:
1. Endocytokines that cause inflammation and pain. 2. Neurocytokines that produce neurological symptoms including the demyelinisation found in multiple sclerosis and psychiatric symptoms such as depression and anxiety. 3. Allergens causing allergies.
Mycoplasma infections can be occult. That means they can be asymptomatic and lie dormant until another bacteria, virus, parasite, stress or toxin activates it and causes the symptomatic phase.
Often these chronic conditions improve dramatically and even completely recover once the infection is identified and appropriately treated. In my opinion, everyone with the above conditions should be screened for chronic mycoplasma infection."
"Acute mycoplasma infections can be diagnosed by seeing an elevation in mycoplasma antibodies in a blood test. However, chronic infections often require specialised DNA testing (polymerase chain reaction). Clues to a persistent mycoplasma infection include an elevation in inflammatory markers like C-reactive protein, low white cell count, unexplained elevation of liver enzymes, elevated thyroid antibodies (in 28%) an elevated ESR, elevated rheumatoid factor, elevated antinuclear antibody and an elevated IgM antibody."
"Autoimmune conditions associated with Mycoplasmas include arthritis, Fibromyalgia, myositis, thyroid dysfunction (Hashimoto�s or Grave�s Diseases), and adrenal dysfunction, signs and symptoms of Lupus, Multiple Sclerosis, Lyme,and Lou Gehrig�s Disease.
The Mycoplasma organism has the capacity to invade cells, tissues and blood, producing systemic infections in numerous organ systems. According to Dr. Nicholson, it can penetrate the central and peripheral nervous system. Because it has the ability to damage the immune system by invading the natural killer cells (NK cells) of the lymphocytes, it weakens them, reduces their numbers, and renders them susceptible to viral infections, such as Human Herpes Virus 6 (HHV6), HHV7 or HHV8. It may also explain some of the environmentally sensitive responses that are seen with CFIDS and MCS.
Mycoplasma infection can trigger inflammatory cytokine over-production that is commonly seen in CFS/FMS. With the induction of CD-4+ helper cells of the immune system, an over production of cytokines such as Interleukin-1, Interleukin-6 and Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha occurs. These elevated cytokines have been implicated in the development of many of the CFS/FMS symptoms, including neurological involvement. They can have specific or nonspecific stimulatory or suppressive effects on lymphocytes, as measured by B and T cell activation.
In addition, the Mycoplasma infection has immune-modulating effects, activating the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. This can cause a cascade of limbic system symptoms characteristic of CFS/FMS."
"Due to the lack of a cell wall, all mycoplasmas are innately resistant to all beta-lactams and glycopeptides. Sulfonamides, trimethoprim, polymixins, nalidixic acid, and rifampin are also inactive. Linezolid is the prototype agent of the oxazolidinone class. These agents are much less active against M. pneumoniae than the other agents that inhibit protein synthesis (224). New quinolones such as moxifloxacin, gatifloxacin, garenoxacin, gemifloxacin, and sparfloxacin tend to have somewhat greater in vitro activity than older agents such as ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, and levofloxacin, although MICs of all fluoroquinolones are severalfold higher than those of macrolides (224, 435-437). Fluoroquinolones have been shown to be bactericidal for M. pneumoniae, whereas macrolides and tetracyclines are primarily bacteriostatic"
My new, very experienced LLMD wasn't too concerned as he said both Myco Pneumonia and CPN are "very common infections."
Still, they are giving me more accurate tests for both.
Stay tuned.
Posted by jackie51 (Member # 14233) on :
bcb--what are your symptoms?
any mold exposure?
Posted by Catgirl (Member # 31149) on :
For those of you with myco and/or cpn, what is your C-reactive protein (inflammatory marker)?
Posted by timaca (Member # 6911) on :
I had IgG and IgA antibody titers to Cpn as high as the lab meausres and my C-reactive protein has always been low.
I've been on rifampin and doxy since the end of April and my IgA antibody titer to Cpn has gone from >=1:256 to 1:16.
Best, Timaca
Posted by Mathias (Member # 5298) on :
I would not trust Labcorp for mycoplasma testing. My first LLMD also said the same thing about a mycoplasma infection not being a big concern. She is no longer my LLMD as that infection almost killed me.
You need to be tested by MDL in Hamilton, NJ. Testing needs to be by PCR method to confirm the species of mycoplasma. Mycoplasma IgG and IgM antibodies cross react across species. Labs like Labcorp only have a test for the Pneumoniae species being that it is very common (walking pneumonia) unlike the other pathogenic species like fermentans.
Once you know the species, you can be properly treated. Tetracycline, Macrolides and Floroquinlones are just about the only classes of antibiotics that work on mycoplasma. Some specifies are resistant to some of these medications as well.
Mycoplasma is a very serious infection. Don't underestimate it.