RA factor off the charts? | Arthritis Information

Just got back a lab result. RF factor of 1280 yup 1280! I feel very tired and have very sore leg muscles ( calfs ) but not much joint involvement. My sed rate is 8. What's up here ??? Also my eyes feel swollen. The Dr is very surprised also. Any thoughts?.Geoff

Diseases other than RA can alter RF factor. Check with your doctor and rule out accordingly.

TABLE 1
Conditions Associated with a Positive Rheumatoid Factor Test

Rheumatic conditions (prevalence)
Rheumatoid arthritis (50 to 90%)
Systemic lupus erythematosus (15 to 35%)
Sjögren's syndrome (75 to 95%)
Systemic sclerosis (20 to 30%)
Cryoglobulinemia (40 to 100%)
Mixed connective tissue disease (50 to 60%)

Nonrheumatic conditions
Aging
Infection: bacterial endocarditis, liver disease, tuberculosis, syphilis, viral infections (especially mumps, rubella and influenza), parasitic diseases
Pulmonary disease: sarcoidosis, interstitial pulmonary fibrosis, silicosis, asbestosis
Miscellaneous diseases: primary biliary cirrhosis, malignancy (especially leukemia and colon cancer)

Adapted with permission from Shmerling RH, Delbanco TL. The rheumatoid factor: an analysis of clinical utility. Am J Med 1991;91:528-34.

Thanks. Pretty sure its RA,however I had my hait yesyed for minerals etc and my Mercury level was very high. I wonder if that could have anything to do with it....What? hait yesyed for minerals Sorry I was tired..I was tested for trace minerals such as lead, copper etc and my Mercury levels were very high. This was from a hair sample ref range was 0>.60 and mine was 1.80Hey, I got that too, what does that mean?

Exerpt from link below: "Increased levels of mercury in hair testing may indicate exposure to increased levels of methyl mercury but hair samples are rarely used because of issues involving testing standardization and the fact that hair is subject to many pre-analytical variables (hair exposure to dyes, bleach, shampoo, etc.)."

See

http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/mercury /test.html

http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/Tests/merc urytests.html

Sounds to me like the test isn't perfected. Blood or urine seem to be better suited for mercury testing, if I understand correctly.