Many doctors say that it has to be very elevated, but Answers.com states the following:
Failure to find RF in the blood does not rule out rheumatoid arthritis because up to 20 percent of people with RA produce no RF or have it at very low levels. In particular, young people with juvenile rheumatoid Arthritis often have no RF in their blood.
Yes There is no specific test that will indicate that you have Rheumatoid arthritis (RA). When there is a suspicion that you may suffer from this disease one of the tests done is a test for Rheumatoid factor(RF). About 90% of people that have RA also have an elevated RF. However having a positive or elevated RF does not necessarily mean you are at present suffering from RA.
High RF is usually associated with RA which is an autoimmune disorder, however this could also indicate one of a number of other autoimmune disorders. a small percentage of healthy elderly people can display elevated RF.
It is possible to have RA without any Rheumatoid factor. This is known as seronegative RA. However if you are suspected of having RA then any RF (rheumatoid factor) helps complete the diagnosis towards the possibility of RA.
Yes you can have RA with an Rf of 20. When a doctor sees the symptoms of RA they automatically check for RF because it is a good indicator that that is the problem when taking the symptoms into account , However you don't need any RF at all to be suffering from RA. When this happens it is described as "seronegative rheumatoid arthritis".An RF of more than 23 units and a titer over than 1:80 can indicate rheumatoid arthritis but may also occur in other conditions.A negative test result for rheumatoid factor does notnecesarily exclude the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis.
Elevated antinuclear antibodies (ANA) can indicate various autoimmune diseases, such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, or Sjögren's syndrome. It can also be elevated in chronic infections, certain medications, or in individuals with a family history of autoimmune disorders. Further evaluation by a healthcare provider is needed to determine the underlying cause of the elevated ANA levels.
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AnswerA complete blood count (CBC), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C protein, rheumatoid factor (RF), and antinuclear antibody (ANA) may be done for patients with suspected rheumatoid arthritis (RA). CBC may show anemia, ESR and C protein may be elevated as a reflection of the inflammatory aspect of the disease, RF is present in 70% of RA patients, and ANA is present in 30%, the latter two reflecting the autoimmune component of the disease.
Yes You can have Rheumatoid arthritis with no RF at all. In that case it is referred to as seronegative RA,
RA levels are tested for if there is a suspicion that a person may be suffering from Rheumatoid arthritis. Not everyone has a Rheumatoid factor and in 20% of cases people that have RA don't have any RF at all. A diagnosis of Rheumatoid arthritis is generally the result of several observations including RF SED rate (inflammation) X-ray results and possibly others.
A complete blood count (CBC), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C protein, rheumatoid factor (RF), and antinuclear antibody (ANA) may be done for patients with suspected rheumatoid arthritis (RA). CBC may show anemia; ESR and C protein may be elevated as a reflection of the inflammatory aspect of the disease. RF is present in 70% of RA patients, and ANA is present in 30%; the latter two reflect the autoimmune component of the disease.
Possibly because it is hard to change old habits. However neither CCP or RF prove that there is RA and to find inflammation levels esr test are usually done anyway. To diagnose RA requires a raft of different tests along with a progression of x rays.