Mono for over 4 months now: help with blood test results

[39_year_old_man]

Hi folks -- I know it's not the best to get advice on the good old Internet, and I do have a doctor, but haven't been able to get in touch with her since I was able to view the blood results yesterday, which are from this past Monday, Nov. 28th. My doctor has an online system, which is great, but I'm seeing results without being able to get her input yet.

So, I've had mono since late July. I had an extremely stressful summer and was not able to rest properly. I now am trying to rest decently, taking more sick days from work, asking my wife to do more at home and with our 4-year-old daughter, etc.

The first line below (the IgM line) was at 1.3 three weeks ago and is now at 1.0. Is that showing improvement? I am still quite fatigued much of the time. Prior to getting my mono, I had been a distance runner since 2000, putting in anywhere from 25 to 70 miles a week. Sometimes I wonder if I'm just pushing through now with the help of that fitness from the past. Four months seems like a long time to still be testing positive for mono.

-             Title: EBV Acute Infection Antibodies
-             EBV Ab VCA  IgM : 1.0 : AI  Range: 0.0-0.8 Flag: H
-                                                             Negative        1.0
-             EBV Early Antigen Ab  IgG : 0.7 : AI  Range: 0.0-0.8
-                                                             Negative        1.0
-             EBV Ab VCA  IgG : 2.6 : AI  Range: 0.0-0.8 Flag: H
-                                                             Negative        1.0
-             EBV Nuclear Antigen Ab  IgG : >8.0 : AI  Range: 0.0-0.8 Flag: H
-                                                             Negative        1.0
-             Interpretation: SPRCS
-                                           EBV Interpretation Chart
-                            Interpretation         VCA-IgM  EA-IgG  VCA-IgG  NA-ABS
-                            Susceptible               -       -        -       -
-                            Acute Infection           +      +or-      +or-    -
-                            Convalescent Phase       +or-    +or-      +       +
-                            Chronic or Reactivated    -       +        +      +or-
-                            Old Infection             -       -       +or-     +
-                                   + Antibody Present      - Antibody Absent

[9DodgeFan]

Hi, the advice sporque gave you was spot-on.  Your results do indicate a slight improvement, but a better "barometer" is just to keep track of how you're feeling.  The better you feel, the less you're going to care about your numbers.  And please be sure to take things VERY slowly!  I was very similar to you, being in very good health and physically active (although 24 years old) when I got mono.  After the initial bout, I immediately went back into working out, and relapsed... this is where the fatigue hit me... BIG time!  It took me over a year before I felt I was actually over the virus, and obviously by that time I was completely out of shape!  So, I'm not telling you this to scare you, but hopefully it will be encouraging to hear that you're not alone in what you're dealing with.  God bless, and don't hesitate to ask any more questions!

[39_year_old_man]

Thanks for your reply. It's much appreciated. I did hear back from my doctor late yesterday, and she did note that I'm still in the convalescent phase, and that my numbers improved slightly from my previous test three weeks earlier. I hear you, though, about not putting too much stock into the mono test results. After posting my question yesterday, I did some research on my own, and I also saw what you wrote, which is that once you have mono, some of those numbers will always be high. It appears the first line is the most important, and since that's gone down, I suspect that's why my doctor referred to some improvement.

It is rather crazy how terribly mono has affected me. I was, no joke, the type of person who basically never got sick. I'm 39, and I can recall two times as an adult when I was genuinely sick with a fever and needed to stay in bed for two or three days. Other than that, I've been extremely healthy.

I just need more patience. Even my employer is getting a little cranky, but I still have sick and vacation leave, so I'll take a day when needed. Hearing this could last even for a year doesn't surprise me at this point. Three months ago I would have thought that was crazy. I do look forward to being over this at some point, and I'm committed to taking it easy to ensure that happens.

[sporque]

Hello, One piece of good advise I can give you, is to give little weight to test results post mono.  I'm sure your Doctor will explain all the results say is you've been infected, have antibodies.  This test will also tell you if you are in the acute or recovery phase.  Some of these numbers are high in people with 0 symptoms.  So they are unreliable for the purpose of monitoring recovery for the most part.

Mono is notorious for prolonged fatigue, especially in older adults. So far, science has be unable to find an exact cause for why this happens, or predictor for who it will happen to.  All you need to know symptoms can pop up for awhile after, a year sometimes, but the good news is it eventually gets better.