Hi, my doctor tested for EBV during a recent routine physical, and I'm freaking out about the test results. I didn't even know she was running this test, but apparently she decided to just to rule out mono since I complained of occasional throat pain felt in the upper throat/inner ears (she has since attributed it to allergies).
Anyway, I just got my results in the mail yesterday and next to the EBV panel my doctor wrote "shows past mono infection only."
My results follow, with the normal range in parenthesis:
VCA IgG: 137 (<18)
VCA IgM : 22.7 (<36)
EA IgG: 5.8 (<9)
NA IgG: <3 (<18)
My doctor says the positive VCA IgG (137) indicates past infection. I'm freaking out for two reasons:
1) 137 seems very high when the normal range is under 18. Is it normal for this number to be that high in the case of a past infection?
2) Everything I've read online, and even the chart to read the results in the lab report, indicate that past infection should show positive VCA IgG and positive NA IgG, but my NA IgG is negative. Why would that be?
I'm really worrying about what all of this means. To top it all off, I have never had mono in the past (at least not that I'm aware of).
I'm hoping someone can explain these results and hopefully put my mind at ease.
---------- Post added at 11:10 ---------- Previous post was at 10:11 ----------
And now I'm freaking out even more, thanks to my Googling. I've read that 5%-10% of people with past EBV infections either do not product the EBNA antibodies, or they disappear over time, "especially in immunocompromised patients." Now I'm terrified there's something wrong with my immune system (cancer? hiv?) that has caused me not to have the EBNA antibodies! Hoping someone else on here has experienced this and is otherwise healthy!
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