Archivo de la etiqueta: subserologies

ANAs subserologies have no sense without ANA

antinuclear antibodies (ANA) subserologies are usually prescribed to diagnose patients with different kind of symptoms. However, these test should not be ordered as a routine, specially, in those patients without positivity to antinuclear antibodies.

According to a recent  paper published  in  Arthritis Care & Research, different expensive procedures should not be prescribed, as a routine, because do not provide meaningful benefit to patients. The list of tests includes: tests for Lyme disease without a history of exposure, MRIs of peripheral joints as routine monitoring tests, prescribing biologic drugs for RA before trying non-biologic medications first, repeat DEXA scans at less than two-year intervals, and performing «the blood test known as antinuclear antibody (ANA) sub-serologies without a positive ANA and clinical suspicion of immune disease