[health] More lab results, yay!

[cupcake_goth]

My doctor's office called with the results of my C4a test. It came back at 4,800. Normal is 2,600. What's really important to know is that my previous numbers were 64 thousand. Hey, I guess I am an over-achiever or something. ::rolls eyes weakly::

C4a is a protein marker that shows immune system activity. The higher the number, the harder your immune system is doing. Or, as the LymeMD blog says:

"C3a and C4a (Labcorp) are products of the complement system, cleaved from C3 and C4. These proteins are mobilized by the immune system as part of its acquired and to a lesser extent innate immune responses. These proteins can attach to unwanted bacteria and target them for destruction. These tests are sensitive indicators of a busy immune system attacking unwanted proteins or germs. These markers can provide a general sense of immune activation in the face of infection or inflammation."


So, getting better. I'm taking so many antibiotics* and vitamin supplements that I'm kind of shocked I don't rattle when I move, but they are having a beneficial effect. I still want laudanum just on general principles, tho'.



*Currently 2 different abx twice a day for three days in a row. I do that for 2 weeks, have a week off, then start back up again. I'm going to be adding a third abx to this collection in the next few weeks. I AM VERY TIRED OF TAKING ANTIBIOTICS. But they're working, so it's worth it.

Comments

[ghost-girl.livejournal.com]

Hooray for ever-decreasing numbers!! :D

[prettyshrub.livejournal.com]

I'm glad it is working. :)

[twilight2000.livejournal.com]

Yea!!!

[indilwen.livejournal.com]

Oh, poor thing! I had no idea you even had Lyme disease...what a sucky thing to have to deal with on top of everything else. You can count on lots of good wishes for your health from this corner♥

Also, yes, laudanum :) Just on general principles, of course!

[oldhalloween.livejournal.com]

Watching Deadwood with a bad cold one day I remember saying to hubby..Bring me laudanum and a bustle stat! Yay for plummeting numbers!

[-dante-sparda-.livejournal.com]

I sooo hear you on the sick of pills thing. Glad to hear you're getting better. :)

[icprncs.livejournal.com]

I don't even want to think about the state of your digestive tract with all those abx. Ugh.

But very, very glad that they're working and you're getting better. Good health news for anybody is welcome right now.

[staxxy.livejournal.com]

I feel you on the pill popping. Handfuls and handfuls... Ugh.

but YAY FOR WORKING!!

[ashbet]

Also with the yay!!! (And with the sympathy for rattling when you move -- I said to Josh that I thought I should get some kind of a trophy when the amount of medication I needed to take with me for an overnight stay at his house -- daily meds and rescue meds -- was too bulky to go into a gallon Ziploc bag. I am now super-classy and carry a plastic grocery bag full of pills instead.)

So glad to hear that the numbers are going down, and that the regimen, while onerous, is working for you!

*smoosh!*

-- A <3