Elevated serum protein

From a friend:

I got a METABOLIC PANEL done today and my
protein came back high.  It was at 8.4.  It doesn't
really give me info on what this all means.

Can you help me?

Thanks

[Enoch Choi, MD]

You should ask your doctor about the significance in your case.  It depends on other tests, and needs to be confirmed with follow up repeat labs.  Sometimes the serum protein looks abnormal even though in reality it's normal due to confounding factors such as elevated glucose or current infection or inflammation.  An elevated serum protein can in some cases be concerning for a number of clinical conditions which can be categorized into plasmacytic, lymphocytic, protein infiltrative, or miscellaneous disorders.  Ask your doctor if these are things you may need to be tested for, or not.

Dr. Enoch Choi, MD
Palo Alto, CA

[sherrill710]

MGUS ARE THE BAD PROTEINS!!! ASSOCIATED WITH GAMMA GLOUBIN,  AND YES TOTAL PREOTEIN IS 8.6 AND I DO HAVE MULTIPLE MYLENOMA AND DON'T LET A NURSE TELL YOU ANYTHING, EACH SITUATION IS DIFFRENT...

[donalhoff]

obtain a serum protein electrophoresis to see what components of the serum are elevated and to look for a monoclonal protein spike of myeloma.

[ferace]

High protein