ANA Comprehensive Panel
This test helps to detect and helps diagnose certain autoimmune disorders, such as lupus and Sjögren syndrome, among other types.
Antinuclear antibodies (ANA) are a group of autoantibodies produced by a person's immune system when it fails to adequately distinguish between "self" and "nonself." The ANA test detects these autoantibodies in the blood.
ANA react with components of the body's own healthy cells and cause signs and symptoms such as tissue and organ inflammation, joint and muscle pain, and fatigue. ANA specifically target substances found in the nucleus of a cell, hence the name "antinuclear." They probably do not damage living cells because they cannot access their nuclei. However, ANA can cause damage to tissue by reacting with nuclear substances when they are released from injured or dying cells.
The ANA test is one of the primary tests for helping to diagnose a suspected autoimmune disorder or rule out other conditions with similar signs and symptoms. The ANA test may be positive with several autoimmune disorders. Patients with the autoimmune disorder systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are almost always positive for ANA, but the percentage of patients with other autoimmune disorders who have positive ANA results varies. Also, a significant number of patients with a variety of other types of disorders (and even some heathy people) may be positive for ANA, especially at low levels.
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Biomarkers included in this panel:
Centromere B Antibody is diagnostic for the form of scleroderma known as CREST (calcinosis, Raynaud's phenomenon, esophageal immotility, sclerodactyly, and telangiectasia). With a high specificity and a prevalence of 80 to 95%, antibodies agai
Learn moreThe anti-dsDNA test identifies the presence of these autoantibodies in the blood. The test for anti-dsDNA, along with other autoantibody tests, may be used to help establish a diagnosis of lupus and distinguish it from other autoimmune disorders.
Learn morePresence of Jo-1 (antihistidyl transfer RNA [t-RNA] synthetase) antibody is associated with polymyositis and may also be seen in patients with dermatomyositis. Polymyositis is one of a group of rare diseases called the inflammatory myopathies
Learn moreHelp to diagnose drug-induced lupus (DIL) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Antibodies to both chromatin and histones have been found in patients with procainamide-induced lupus; however, patients with lupus induced by drugs such as quinidine,
Learn moreScl-70 antibody is seen in 20% of people with scleroderma (also known as systemic sclerosis), and in some people with CREST syndrome (calcinosis, Raynaud, esophageal dysfunction, sclerodactyly, telangiectasia).
Learn moreA positive result for RNP antibodies is consistent with a connective tissue disease. Although strongly associated with connective tissue diseases, RNP antibodies are not considered a "marker" for any particular disease except in the followi
Learn moreSmith antigens, along with RNP antigens, are part of small nuclear RNAs. Levels of antibodies to these two antigens are often elevated in SLE. The Smith antigen is composed of the B1, D, and E proteins. Anti-Smith antibody has low sensitivity but
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