Have just received and attempted to decipher lab report on blood work. Please join me in gentle laughter as I proclaim: I do not have the big C.
(DUH.)
Cool, my strategy worked. And I’m not blushing at all. Really, I’m not.
I am also pleased to announce the health of my thyroid, probably the only part of my body I wasn’t worried about.
But here is something curious. My B12 level has received a rating I can only describe as “normalish, but please continue to fret.” The normal range is 200-1100 pg/mL (what’s a pg? picogram? piggygrunt?) and I am at 322. Good good. But. There is a prominent message beneath:
PLEASE NOTE: ALTHOUGH THE REFERENCE RANGE FOR VITAMIN B12 IS 200-1100 PG/ML, IT HAS BEEN REPORTED THAT BETWEEN 5 AND 10% OF PATIENTS WITH VALUES BETWEEN 200 AND 400 PG/ML MAY EXPERIENCE NEUROPSYCHIATIC AND HEMATOLOGIC ABNORMALITIES DUE TO OCCULT B12 DEFICIENCY; LESS THAN 1% OF PATIENTS WITH VALUES ABOVE 400 PG/ML WILL HAVE SYMPTOMS.
In other words, I may yet be a few piggygrunts short of a full litter.
Pricklies and numbness are in the category here referred to as “NEUROPSYCHIATRIC.” (This does not imply that they’re only in my head, but that they’re neurological in nature. Psychiatric symptoms of B12 deficiency include mild depression and memory loss. Oh, don’t get me started…)
So I can’t be sure whether the Ps & N are due to diabetes or B12 deficiency (or some as yet unworried-about cause). If the B12 is the problem but is not caused by celiac, it should be correctable by—you’ll never guess—
SHOTS!
Oh, the irony.
Nevertheless I think I want to be among that anomalous 5-10%. I would much rather have to reacquaint myself with syringes than face a diabetes complication already. Maybe the EMR will provide helpful information, and maybe Dr. Keeper can suggest further testing. Until then I’ll go back to waiting. And maybe have a sandwich too. With extra bread.
Check with your doctor, you might be able to put the B12 in your infusion set port.
ReplyDeleteA lot of people don't know that there is a port into the infusion set until they have been pumping long.
You might not want to be mixing the B12 and insulin in the same area, but it's worth a thought.
Happy to hear you don't have the Big Casino. At least the B12 semideficiency is fixable. It sounds like it could be what's causing your symptoms. Let's hope that it is and not the diabetes doing it. Now you've given me one more thing to investigate ;)
ReplyDeleteV,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you're okay.
And thanks for making me laugh as you made me worry about you. The mere concept of a piggygrunt had me grinning like a fool.
In Ninja Stars we Trust,
Kerri.
Kathleen, thanks, I will certainly ask about that.
ReplyDeleteHi Shannon. Am not much of a gambler so very happy without Big Casino :) It seems from what I'm reading that B12 def is a smidge creepy itself, symptoms not always reversible, but it's still my favorite of the contenders. Not that a girl gets her pick every time...
K...Oink oink!
Hey there Violet,
ReplyDeleteGreat news about the celiac and thyroid tests! I'm so glad you can cross those off your "things-to-worry-about" list.
As for the B12 deficiency, my mother-in-law was dx'd with it 4 years ago after experiencing numbness & tingling in her hands & feet. Took a while for docs to diagnose it. As I recall, initially, she had to have a shot a week, then she was put on a one shot per month schedule (on which she remains to this day). Neuropathy is completely gone.
From what I understand, a vegetarian diet can cause this problem. Though my MIL was certainly not a vegan-- just drank a ton of coffee.
Sorry for the ramble. Just thinking about you, and am VERY happy you're all right.
Sandra
Hiya Sandra. I'm glad your MIL got better. Do you think that by banking positive anecdotes we can increase the odds that they will apply to us? :-) I hope so.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a vegan, though I don't eat meat all that often. And I've cut back my dairy too much since my dx. Hate using up all those carbs for a glass of milk when I'm really starving for bread. Silly; I will correct. But we're talking 7 months there--before that I was guzzling milk along with the rest of the world's liquids--and actually my first symptoms came right when I was diagnosed, so change that to 0 months. The liver stores about 5 years of B12, so if your diet is insufficient it takes several years for the problem to catch up with you. So in my case there's probably a nondietary culprit.
I've also learned that B12 deficiency usually strikes elderly folks, and it often goes undiagnosed. In fact, a great many of the mental changes we associate with aging may be signs of advanced B12 def! The cause is often an autoimmune condition called pernicious anemia that prevents absorption of B12. This occurs most often in the elderly--or in people with other autoimmune disorders. So that might be my problem.
Blah, blah, blah. Hmm, what did Violet do all weekend? :) Thanks for the support.