Table of Contents
What does a positive cold agglutinin test mean?
A positive titer may mean that the person tested has cold agglutinin disease. Cold agglutinin disease may be primary or secondary, induced by some other disease or condition such as: Mycoplasma pneumoniae infections—up to 75% of those affected will have increased cold agglutinins.
How does a cold agglutinin affect CBC results?
While RBC agglutination causes clinical symptoms of hemolytic anemia, agglutination caused by cold agglutinin is a notorious pre-analytical and analytical factor that leads to spurious automated complete blood count (CBC) results [2].
What is the normal range for cold agglutinins?
Patients with cold agglutinin syndrome usually exhibit a titer value greater than 1:512, with rare cases reportedly as low as 1:64. Normal individuals often have low levels of cold agglutinins.
What tests are done for cold agglutinin?
Test Overview A cold agglutinins blood test is done to check for conditions that cause the body to make certain types of antibodies called cold agglutinins. Cold agglutinins are normally made by the immune system in response to infection. They cause red blood cells to clump together (agglutinate) at low temperatures.
Is cold agglutinin disease rare?
Cold agglutinin disease is a rare condition, but if you have it, you’re not alone.
What diseases can cause cold Agglutinins?
Secondary cold agglutinin disease may be associated with:
- Bacterial Infections such as mycoplasma, Legionnaires’ disease, syphilis, listeriosis, or E.
- Viral infections such Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, mumps, varicella, rubella, adenovirus, HIV, influenza, or hepatitis C.
How does a blood smear detect cold agglutinin?
Agglutination of red blood cells and their decreased count in the blood smear, along with findings from the tests that detect cold agglutinin levels, help in confirming CAD diagnosis. The patient may feel a small prick when the needle is inserted.
Why is the MCV elevated in cold agglutinin disease?
These are typical of aggregates seen in persons with cold agglutinin disease. The results of the reticulocyte count are usually increased in patients with cold agglutinin disease, with polychromasia in the peripheral blood smear. The mean corpuscular volume (MCV) is elevated because of reticulocytosis, as well as agglutination of the RBCs.
What are the results of a peripheral blood smear?
Peripheral blood smear showing several clumps of RBCs with the largest in the center. These are typical of aggregates seen in persons with cold agglutinin disease. The results of the reticulocyte count are usually increased in patients with cold agglutinin disease, with polychromasia in the peripheral blood smear.
What happens to red blood cells in cold agglutinin disease?
In cold agglutinin disease, autoantibodies called cold agglutinin produced by the immune system attack the red blood cells upon exposure to cold temperatures. This causes the red blood cells to clump together and eventually leads to their premature breakdown.