ANA (Antinuclear Antibodies), which aims to assess some autoimmune disorders, determines the presence of antibodies in the blood by taking a sample of blood drawn from the vein in the arm to be analyzed and read the results that indicate a result Positive or negative.
If the blood sample is only for the ANA test, it means that the person can eat and drink before the test. If the blood sample is used for additional tests, it may be necessary to fast for a period of time before the test. Tell the person as instructions before the test.
The immune system often works to fight infection. In contrast, there are antibodies to the nucleus that attack the tissues of the body, specifically the nucleus of each cell. Antibodies to the nucleus (ANA) are a group of antibodies that the immune system produces when it fails to distinguish between autoimmune and non-autosensory immunity. These cells attack healthy cells in the body, causing some symptoms and signs that appear on tissues and organs, such as low body temperature, persistent fatigue, arthritis, rash, skin sensitivity to light, hair loss, muscle aches, numbness or tingling in the hands. Or feet, inflammation and damage of organs and tissues, including kidneys, lungs, heart, central nervous system and blood vessels.
Antibody antibody testing (ANA) is used as an initial test to help assess autoimmune disorders affecting many tissues and organs throughout the body. Depending on the signs and symptoms that a person may experience, the ANA test is used in conjunction with other tests. The presence of antibodies that target specific substances within the cell nucleus is detected with the aim of controlling centromere, Histone and anti-RNA antibodies. This test is also used in conjunction with a person’s medical history, to help diagnose the condition and describe the appropriate treatment for each case.
The results usually indicate a positive and this means the presence of antibodies, ie the presence of an autoimmune disease, the most common is SLE. If the result is negative, it means that the immune system is free from any disease that may affect it, but it is preferable to repeat the test more than once to confirm the outcome, especially if the result is negative and not positive.
Some people have a positive test without any autoimmune diseases. They may be up to 5% of test samples. This analysis does not mean that it is necessary to have a specific disease in itself but rather to indicate the possibility of disease.
It should be noted here that the positive result in the examination may sometimes indicate the absence of any disease of autoimmune diseases, where the analysis shows in this case that there is no need for the presence of a particular disease, which reflects only the possibility of the existence of the disease alone.