Hi all,
I was diagnosed by a rheumy last month and have been on Plaquenil since then. The test used to confirm was the Zeus Elisa which showed a SSA (Ro) semi quantitative level of 405 with positive being over 120. SSB was negative. Last week I had a 2nd opinion by a Mayo Clinic rheumy who did a different testing method and it showed less than 0.2 for both SSA and SSB with >1 being positive so it did not confirm the diagnosis.
Symptoms besides dry eyes, nose and mouth are fatigue, joint pain, nerve pain in legs, cognitive issues among others so I was initially pleased to finally get a diagnosis that would explain the symptoms that have plagued me intensely for over 2 years and actually been occuring for much longer. Now I wonder if the first testing method was inferior to detecting the antibodies and perhaps Mayo Clinic's method is the more accurate.
I will bring this up when I have a follow up visit with the first rheumy but thought I would see what method most of you use. I only saw the Mayo Clinic rheumy at the request of the hematologist specialist I see every 2 years for a blood disorder. The blood disorder can cause fatigue and cognitive issues so there can be some overlap of symptoms. I don't plan to see the Mayo Clinic rheumy again but she did say I should stay on the Plaquenil for a time to see if it does help.
In addition to Plaquenil I'm having acupuncture and trying a anti inflammatory diet.
Would love to know which testing method to request in the future...