What tests for lamblia should be taken
Giardia analysis consists of two types of analyzes:
- blood test for lamblia;
- analysis of feces for lamblia.
Giardia blood test
About a week after infection in the patient's blood, an antibody test may show IgM.
And after about a week, these antibodies change to others, such as IgG, which can then be detected in a person's blood for a fairly long time after complete recovery.
It turns out that the absence or presence of antibodies to lamblia in human blood is not a reliable evidence of the presence of parasites or the effectiveness of the treatment received.
How to take a blood test for lamblia
In order to carry out this analysis, it is required to take a small amount of blood from a vein.
Analysis of feces for lamblia
This study is the most accurate method for detecting lamblia in the body.. The patient's feces helps doctors detect not only the lamblia themselves, but also their eggs.
The main difficulty in passing feces tests for the presence of lamblia is as follows: the feces should be literally freshly collected and still keep the patient's body warm.
That is, no more than twenty minutes should pass from collection to study of the material.And this means that only in such a stool sample is it possible to identify the lamblia themselves.
It takes at least two more hours to find their eggs.
To obtain a reliable fecal test result for Giardia antigen, it is preferable to use liquid feces.
Before taking a feces analysis, it is required not to take medications for worms for at least a week. In addition, it is advisable to donate feces at least three times at intervals of three days.
The sample should be taken from a variety of places in the stool.
Sometimes a situation may arise that the analysis of feces cannot be delivered to the laboratory in two hours.
In this case, special preservatives can be taken in the laboratory, which allow the analysis to be stored for a longer time. The best preservatives are the preservatives Safaraliev and Turdyev.
You can also distinguish this type of analysis as a blood test for antibodies to lamblia.
There is even a rapid test for detecting lamblia, but it is not able to show such a reliable result as the analysis of feces for lamblia.
Deciphering a blood test for lamblia is carried out to determine antibodies to lamblia antigens.
The testing system detects IgA and IgG antibodies in total or separately. After the elimination of lamblia occurs, the total number of antibodies begins to decline, until a maximum of six months later, they completely disappear from the blood.
Antibodies remain in the blood of a person for a long time after the final recovery, therefore, decoding a blood test for Giardia is not able to accurately indicate the presence of parasites in the body.
It is this reason that repels medical professionals from its use in Russia and in other countries.
As you know, lamblia have flagella that facilitate reproduction and movement, resulting in the appearance of cysts.
The analysis for lamblia cysts is carried out in parallel with the examination of the contents of the rectum and duodenum.
And since cysts are discharged intermittently, a negative analysis is not at all evidence that there is no lamblia.
Sometimes, after a noticeable improvement in the state of the body, a positive blood test result for lamblia remains. This is because after the death of lamblia, even more poisons and toxins remain in the blood than before.
It is known that antibodies in the blood can be present for up to six months. Then the level of antibodies in the blood will show the norm.
There is another reliable way to identify the causative agent of the disease - PCR analysis for the presence of lamblia.
PCR (polymerase chain reaction) analysis today represents the most accurate, fastest, modern method for diagnosing all kinds of infections.
The more expensive test for detecting lamblia is the ELISA method (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay).
An ELISA test can detect antibodies to parasites in the venous blood. However, we must not forget that these antibodies can be detected only three weeks after the defeat by lamblia.
In children, giardia that has penetrated the body can cause illness much more often than in an adult. This is due not only to the way of life, but also due to insufficiently developed protective mechanisms of the intestines.
Where to get tested for Giardia
The analysis for lamblia can be taken, for example, in the city of St. Petersburg, in the Helix Laboratory Service.
The approximate price of tests for detecting lamblia here ranges from 300 to 600 rubles.
The address of the Helix Laboratory Service (Diagnostic Center "Academic"): St. Petersburg, Grazhdansky prospect 88, building 3.
Nearest stop metro: "Academic".
Telephone: 7 (812) 309 12 21.
In Moscow, you can also find the Helix Laboratory Service, where you can get tested for Giardia.
Its address: Diagnostic Center "Beskudnikovsky", boulevard Beskudnikovsky 8, k4.
Immediate metro stops: Alma-Atinskaya, Medvedkovo, Babushkinskaya, Novokosino, Elektrozavodskaya, Petrovsko-Razumovskaya.
Telephone: 7 (495) 783 36 00.
In Moscow, you can also apply for tests for detecting lamblia in Medical Laboratory "Invitro".
One of the laboratory departments is located at:Moscow, Gazetny lane 1/12.
Telephone: (495) 363 03 63.
The average cost of an analysis to identify lamblia is 500-750 rubles.
Be healthy!
