Home Forums General Discussion Q Fever: Positive Lab Result. Anyone else?

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  • #308711
    purplepanda
    Participant

    I saw my AP Dr this past week who assessed me & also tested me for Lyme & co-infections since I’ve had several engorged ticks in me over the last couple of years. Quest Labs did the Lyme band testing & Focus Diagnostics in San Juan Capistrano, CA did most of the co-infections.

    All of my Lyme bands were Nonreactive, and the Lyme Disease (IGM), WB was Negative.

    I tested positive for Q Fever IgG, Phase II screen with a titer of 1:64 when the reference range is <1:16. I wonder if my samples were mixed up or if this result is a false positive. I have not been around cattle a lot (petted & fed a cow last year, used to feed horses in neighbor's pasture), sheep, or goats, or especially animals giving birth, which is where most of the bug comes from. I also have never had raw milk. I have an order to get retested in 2-4 weeks. I've read conflicting info on ticks transmitting Q Fever to humans -- some say can't be transmitted to humans via tick, only to animals. Another place said ticks can be the vector.

    Since I have this strange result being part of the co-infections panel, I’m wondering if I should go through Igenex. I have the Igenex test kit, but thought I’d wait for the results from the AP Dr. I just don’t know if I should trust the results.

    Anyone else?

    11-20-15: Off Mobic. No NSAIDS.
    10-14-15: Working toward Minocycline 100mg BID. Able to "lock" my knees when standing now!
    9-14-15: 2nd Clindamycin IV series. Still on 5mg Prednisone & 7.5 mg Mobic per day. Swelling greatly reduced in knees.
    8-15-15: Started Minocycline 100mg BID MWF to present.
    5-25-15: Started generic Minocycline, 100mg MWF. Tried titrating to 100mg BID MWF over a month & went back down to 100mg MWF.
    5-18-15: 1st Clindamycin IV series. Dropped Naproxen, added Mobic.

    #374891
    Calida
    Participant

    @purplepanda wrote:

    I saw my AP Dr this past week who assessed me & also tested me for Lyme & co-infections since I’ve had several engorged ticks in me over the last couple of years. Quest Labs did the Lyme band testing & Focus Diagnostics in San Juan Capistrano, CA did most of the co-infections.

    All of my Lyme bands were Nonreactive, and the Lyme Disease (IGM), WB was Negative.

    I tested positive for Q Fever IgG, Phase II screen with a titer of 1:64 when the reference range is <1:16. I wonder if my samples were mixed up or if this result is a false positive. I have not been around cattle a lot (petted & fed a cow last year, used to feed horses in neighbor's pasture), sheep, or goats, or especially animals giving birth, which is where most of the bug comes from. I also have never had raw milk. I have an order to get retested in 2-4 weeks. I've read conflicting info on ticks transmitting Q Fever to humans — some say can't be transmitted to humans via tick, only to animals. Another place said ticks can be the vector.

    Since I have this strange result being part of the co-infections panel, I’m wondering if I should go through Igenex. I have the Igenex test kit, but thought I’d wait for the results from the AP Dr. I just don’t know if I should trust the results.

    Anyone else?

    Hi purplepanda,

    Your post caught my eye because I first learned of the existence of something called Q fever just a few days ago, probably in an article about chronic Lyme. It was mentioned as one of the conditions that require long-term, perhaps lifetime, use of antibiotics. Until I read your post I didn’t realize it can be transmitted to humans via raw milk, which I drink daily. Yikes! 😯

    With regard to false positives….I don’t believe in them as much as I used to but I hope your result is one.

    AP docs are not LLMDs and the Lyme docs seem to favor Igenex. Your history of tick bites deserves proper testing.

    Best of luck with the Q-fever follow-up. I’ll be thinking of you.

    Cali

    Dx: Diffuse Systemic Sclerosis/SLE overlap, Raynaud's June 2013, Lyme August 2013
    AP: Azithromycin (Teva) 250mg BID, May 2014, Clindamycin 600mg every 8 hours for 2 weeks July 27, 2015 - Aug 10, 2015
    Minocycline (Teva generic) 100mg BID November 20, 2014
    Meds: LDN 3.5 mg, Prednisone 5 mg (discontinued), Aspirin 81mg, Liposomal Artimisinin 50mg QID x 3 weeks, 4th week off, rotating (discontinued May 2015, restarted 2016 7 days per month), Daily Nystatin, 2 tabs BID, as a preventative measure
    Supplements

    #374892
    Jeanies Girl
    Participant

    My husband just recently tested positive for Q fever. I talked to a friend in Montana who is very knowledgeable concerning raw milk and asked her what her take was. (We drink raw milk.) She said in all of the literature she has read, not one has mentioned any case of raw milk contamination in the US. She said it did happen in other countries. She also said that Q fever was found in Montana and was related to ticks. (We lived in Montana 3 or 4 blocks from the lab that tests among other things Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.) She said it is really easy to contract. She said even breathing the dust off the hay of an infected animal would do it. (He also worked for a short time for a lab that did lab testing on animals.) She also said he might get retested. She said they had a couple in their church that was working on an adoption and the husband tested positive for a disease and then was retested a 2nd and 3rd time and those came out negative.

    DX: Bacterial (mycoplasm) infection
    AP: Began June 2015
    Clindomycin IV 900 mg-every 3 months for 5 days
    Minocycline 100 mg MWF am and pm
    Flagyl 500 mg 2 x day for 3 days in a row every month
    Symptoms: Since approximately 1997-Extreme fatigue, (Intermittent: muscle weakness, stiffness, brain fog, lack of stamina)
    Supplements: Vit. C 3000 mg, Vitamin D 5000 IU every other day and 10,000 on remaining days, Vitamin B complex, Fish Oil 1000 mg 2 x day

    #374893
    purplepanda
    Participant

    Thank you for responding Calida & Jeanie’s Girl. I haven’t checked this thread in a while.

    I was retested last week (different lab) and am awaiting results to see if my titers went up or if it’s an error, which I should hear about in a day or two.

    Q Fever is a Ricksettial-type bacteria, so I’ve read. I guess my concern, as you stated, too, Calida, is to go through with the Igenex Lyme & co-infections tests for my area since I keep seeing the words Ricksettia & Lyme Disease (co-infections) sometimes mentioned together. I wonder if the Q Fever result could be a different Ricksettial-type disease and I really have something else tick-related?? Does that make sense??

    Jeanie’s Girl: Did your husband have any symptoms? I read it’s easy to contract and can live in soil for years as it’s not diluted by rain or killed by sunlight or dry conditions. I’ve read of outbreaks in different states and abroad, mainly among farm workers or meat processing plants… I don’t recall reading about outbreaks of Q Fever from drinking raw milk, but drinking raw milk was listed on many sites as one of the ways to contract it . The raw milk question was one I had to answer for a dept of health survey, since it is a reportable disease.

    Good luck to your husband, Jeanie’s Girl.

    11-20-15: Off Mobic. No NSAIDS.
    10-14-15: Working toward Minocycline 100mg BID. Able to "lock" my knees when standing now!
    9-14-15: 2nd Clindamycin IV series. Still on 5mg Prednisone & 7.5 mg Mobic per day. Swelling greatly reduced in knees.
    8-15-15: Started Minocycline 100mg BID MWF to present.
    5-25-15: Started generic Minocycline, 100mg MWF. Tried titrating to 100mg BID MWF over a month & went back down to 100mg MWF.
    5-18-15: 1st Clindamycin IV series. Dropped Naproxen, added Mobic.

    #374894
    Jeanies Girl
    Participant

    We both have tested positive for mycoplasm, so all of his symptoms seem to have stemmed from that because we have had this for 20 or 30 years. I would suspect the Q fever is only a couple of years old. So to answer your question, no I don’t think he ever had any symptoms.

    DX: Bacterial (mycoplasm) infection
    AP: Began June 2015
    Clindomycin IV 900 mg-every 3 months for 5 days
    Minocycline 100 mg MWF am and pm
    Flagyl 500 mg 2 x day for 3 days in a row every month
    Symptoms: Since approximately 1997-Extreme fatigue, (Intermittent: muscle weakness, stiffness, brain fog, lack of stamina)
    Supplements: Vit. C 3000 mg, Vitamin D 5000 IU every other day and 10,000 on remaining days, Vitamin B complex, Fish Oil 1000 mg 2 x day

    #374895
    purplepanda
    Participant

    Second Q Fever test came back negative. I just read that if one has a positive rheumatoid factor, it can cross react to give a false positive result, if no “rheumatoid factor absorbent” is used by the lab to control for the RF factor. Sooooooo, I believe this is how I received the positive titer. I just wish I had read about the testing procedures & pitfalls of testing for this a few weeks ago.

    Thought I’d pass this on in case anyone else tests positive for Q Fever & has rheumatoid arthritis…

    Thank you for the positive thoughts, Calida. Jeanie’s Girl: Did your husband have his Rheumatoid Factor (RF) tested? The best of health to all!

    11-20-15: Off Mobic. No NSAIDS.
    10-14-15: Working toward Minocycline 100mg BID. Able to "lock" my knees when standing now!
    9-14-15: 2nd Clindamycin IV series. Still on 5mg Prednisone & 7.5 mg Mobic per day. Swelling greatly reduced in knees.
    8-15-15: Started Minocycline 100mg BID MWF to present.
    5-25-15: Started generic Minocycline, 100mg MWF. Tried titrating to 100mg BID MWF over a month & went back down to 100mg MWF.
    5-18-15: 1st Clindamycin IV series. Dropped Naproxen, added Mobic.

    #374896
    Maz
    Keymaster

    @purplepanda wrote:

    I just read that if one has a positive rheumatoid factor, it can cross react to give a false positive result, if no “rheumatoid factor absorbent” is used by the lab to control for the RF factor.

    Just wondering – was same lab used and was your RF negative the second time around?

    #374897
    purplepanda
    Participant

    Hi, Maz. Good question.

    LabCorp, different lab, did the 2nd Q Fever test. There was no order to get RF tested the second time, only Q fever alone.

    I’m assuming my RF is still highly positive (went up to 140 in May before starting AP from 127 this January), and I’m quite sure that’s why I had positive titers for Q Fever.

    Now, you’ve got me thinking, Maz… Why wouldn’t I have a positive Q Fever test from LabCorp as well? I wonder if LabCorp has a different protocol & “corrected” for a possible positive RF interference before running the test? I doubt that my RF is within normal limits as I’ve only been on 100mg mino/MWF since the last week in May after 5 days of clindamycin IV’s the 3rd week in May. Wishful thinking, but do you think it’s possible my RF is in normal range?? That’s a lot of points to drop so quickly…

    Thank you.

    The AP Dr says 4 people from there have tested positive for Q Fever. I wonder how many of the 4 have a positive RF.

    11-20-15: Off Mobic. No NSAIDS.
    10-14-15: Working toward Minocycline 100mg BID. Able to "lock" my knees when standing now!
    9-14-15: 2nd Clindamycin IV series. Still on 5mg Prednisone & 7.5 mg Mobic per day. Swelling greatly reduced in knees.
    8-15-15: Started Minocycline 100mg BID MWF to present.
    5-25-15: Started generic Minocycline, 100mg MWF. Tried titrating to 100mg BID MWF over a month & went back down to 100mg MWF.
    5-18-15: 1st Clindamycin IV series. Dropped Naproxen, added Mobic.

    #374898
    Maz
    Keymaster

    @purplepanda wrote:

    Now, you’ve got me thinking, Maz… Why wouldn’t I have a positive Q Fever test from LabCorp as well? I wonder if LabCorp has a different protocol & “corrected” for a possible positive RF interference before running the test? I doubt that my RF is within normal limits as I’ve only been on 100mg mino/MWF since the last week in May after 5 days of clindamycin IV’s the 3rd week in May. Wishful thinking, but do you think it’s possible my RF is in normal range?? That’s a lot of points to drop so quickly…

    It’s not uncommon for different labs to produce different results, even if run simultaneously at same blood draw. There can be a lot of variance between labs in terms of testing method sensitivity and specificity. You could try calling the labs to ask them if they have any stats on percentages of false negatives/positives for Q-fever. I’m doubtful they’d adjust for RF antibodies as they wouldn’t know you were RF positive and much testing is run through mechanized stepped procedures and lab techs who likely just plug in results to the system. Immune function is a funny thing….a passing cold or flu vaccine, for instance, can suppress immune function enough to nullify a test result for a period of time, as immune response gets geared up to dealing with something else. This is why it can be interesting to test thru two different labs at the same time, to check for consistency of results because when running the same test thru a different lab, later, there could be other variables that are producing a false negative, too. This is not to say that the first result was right, as it is possible it was a lab error, but this could be resolved by re-running the test thru the original lab, as it is also possible that it is a more accurate test. Also, possible your round of Clindamycin and starting Mino brought titers of Q fever down if the Labcorp test was run after treatment commenced.

    Doubtful your RF is changed much in only one week and it’s more common for it to elevate as a response to herxing. It can take several months or longer for it to start going on the downswing, which is why it can be a bit unnerving when folks are working with inexperienced docs. Rheumies will often see an elevated RF and herxing as a sign of disease worsening, whereas an AP doc or LLMD would see it as a positive response caused by die-off.

    I know….probably confuses the issue further….this is complex stuff, but it’s why a knowledgable docs are worth their weight in gold!

    #374899
    Linda L
    Participant

    Jeannie,
    Do you take iron everyday? How much? Why do you take it? Iron can be overdosed easily.
    Linda L.

    RA tried everything: Methotraxate, Arava, Humira. Pneumonia three times. Anemia. Very low iron. Hypothyroidism
    AP from April 2014 till August 2015. No luck.
    Current medications: Natural thyroid, Mobic, supplements,
    vitamins and minerals.
    MTHFR heterozygous

    #374900
    Jeanies Girl
    Participant

    Someone had asked if my husband had his RF tested. Yes. Both of us tested and we were both negative.

    I take 50 mg a day for iron because I’m anemic. It seems like I’ve always been anemic.

    We got the prescriptions that the doctor ordered for the Q Fever. I didn’t realize at first that one of them was a generic for Plaquenil. After all I’ve read about it lately, that scared me a bit. I asked him if maybe he ought to get retested before jumping into the treatment for Q Fever. He thought that sounded like a good idea, so he will see if the doctor will run the tests again. Then, of course, if it comes back negative which tests do we believe. 😕

    DX: Bacterial (mycoplasm) infection
    AP: Began June 2015
    Clindomycin IV 900 mg-every 3 months for 5 days
    Minocycline 100 mg MWF am and pm
    Flagyl 500 mg 2 x day for 3 days in a row every month
    Symptoms: Since approximately 1997-Extreme fatigue, (Intermittent: muscle weakness, stiffness, brain fog, lack of stamina)
    Supplements: Vit. C 3000 mg, Vitamin D 5000 IU every other day and 10,000 on remaining days, Vitamin B complex, Fish Oil 1000 mg 2 x day

    #374901
    Jeanies Girl
    Participant

    Just FYI, Husband’s 2nd testing was positive for Q fever. Doctor changed his meds to Doxycycline Hyclate 200 mg twice a day every day and Hydroxychloroquine (generic for Plaquenil) 200 mg once a day. He is to continue with the Clindomycin IV 900 mg to be taken every 3 months for 5 days straight and then Metronidazole (generic for Flagyl) 500 mg 1 tablet twice a day for 3 days straight once a month.

    Question: Does the Doxycline work on the mycoplasm, too?

    DX: Bacterial (mycoplasm) infection
    AP: Began June 2015
    Clindomycin IV 900 mg-every 3 months for 5 days
    Minocycline 100 mg MWF am and pm
    Flagyl 500 mg 2 x day for 3 days in a row every month
    Symptoms: Since approximately 1997-Extreme fatigue, (Intermittent: muscle weakness, stiffness, brain fog, lack of stamina)
    Supplements: Vit. C 3000 mg, Vitamin D 5000 IU every other day and 10,000 on remaining days, Vitamin B complex, Fish Oil 1000 mg 2 x day

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