Can You Have a High Chloride Number and Be Sick and Not Have Cystic Fibrosis?
Monday, July 26th, 2010 at
9:25 pm
pamelasnichols asked:
My 16 month old daughter had a sweat chloride test done and The number came back at 53. They say 40-60 is borderline. I was wondering if anyone out there had the same thing and what the outcome was. They are sending her to get more tests done on her lungs, but I am wondering if her number can still be high and not have cystic fibrosis. I am very scared I also have a 6 week old little girl and my 16 month has all the symptoms including the very salty taste to her skin. Can anyone tell me if this has happened to them and what advice they can offer me.
Tagged with: Cystic Fibrosis • Lungs • Sweat Test
Filed under: Cystic Fibrosis
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
I’m afraid the only suggestion I have is to see if you and her father are carriers of the cystic fibrosis gene.
I believe that 1 out of 450 people carry this gene. Carriers dont actually have the disease because they have another copy of the gene to correct the problem (There are 2 sets of genes in each cell). However if 2 people who are carriers meet up, they have a 25% chance of having a child who has 2 bad copies of the gene, so they would express it.
Trust your doctor though, go with their suggestion. And best of luck.
In persons with too much base, urine chloride measurements can tell the doctor whether the cause is loss of salt (in cases of dehydration, vomiting, or use of diuretics, where urine chloride would be very low) or an excess of certain hormones such as cortisol or aldosterone (where urine chloride would be high). Urine tests for chloride are also used, along with sodium, to monitor persons put on a low-salt diet. If sodium and chloride levels are high, the doctor knows that the patient is not following the diet.
The blood chloride test is almost never ordered by itself. It is usually ordered as part of an electrolyte panel, a basic metabolic panel, or a comprehensive metabolic panel, which are ordered frequently as part of a routine physical or evaluation of a patient with an acute or chronic illness. Some of these tests may be ordered at regular intervals when a patient has a disease or condition or is taking a medication that can cause an electrolyte imbalance. Electrolyte panels or basic metabolic panels are commonly used to monitor treatment of certain problems, including high blood pressure, heart failure, and liver and kidney disease.
A urine chloride test may be performed along with a blood or urine sodium when evaluating the cause of low or high blood chloride levels. The doctor will look at whether the chloride measurement changes mirror those of the sodium. This helps the doctor determine if there is also an acid-base imbalance and helps to guide treatment.
Increased levels of chloride (called hyperchloremia) usually indicate dehydration, but can also occur with any other problem that causes high blood sodium. Hyperchloremia also occurs when too much base is lost from the body (producing metabolic acidosis), or when a person hyperventilates (causing respiratory alkalosis).