No Enzymes!
At least not yet. You may remember my post from early on in our CF journey, where we received the results of Sienna's pancreatic elastase test done at just five weeks old. Her results (124) put her in the mildly insufficient/gray zone; with severe insufficiency being below 100, and sufficiency being above 200. A normal person's elastase levels are greater than 500.
According to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, 90% of those living with Cystic Fibrosis must take enzymes to aid digestion. Without enzymes, the body is unable to break down food and absorb nutrients which ultimately leads to malabsorbtion. With Sienna, we were able to hold off on supplemental enzymes due to her fantastic weight gain as a newborn. Our little chunkster was generally in the 90th percentile for weight!
After speaking with other CF moms and their experience with the elastase test, it seemed that more often than not, people saw a shift from mildly insufficient to severely insufficient over time. But...what gave me hope, was that there were a few moms who saw the dial go the other way.
As the months went on, Sienna never seemed to show signs or symptoms of insufficiency. Because of this, at her last clinic appointment, I asked her team to retest her pancreatic elastase. After going back and forth with insurance for a month, we got the repeat test approved. I collected a sample and off to the lab it went!
We received the results two weeks later and...
Over 500! Not only are her levels sufficient, but I believe they are considered NORMAL.
We will continue to monitor her and hope that we stay enzyme free!
According to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, 90% of those living with Cystic Fibrosis must take enzymes to aid digestion. Without enzymes, the body is unable to break down food and absorb nutrients which ultimately leads to malabsorbtion. With Sienna, we were able to hold off on supplemental enzymes due to her fantastic weight gain as a newborn. Our little chunkster was generally in the 90th percentile for weight!
After speaking with other CF moms and their experience with the elastase test, it seemed that more often than not, people saw a shift from mildly insufficient to severely insufficient over time. But...what gave me hope, was that there were a few moms who saw the dial go the other way.
As the months went on, Sienna never seemed to show signs or symptoms of insufficiency. Because of this, at her last clinic appointment, I asked her team to retest her pancreatic elastase. After going back and forth with insurance for a month, we got the repeat test approved. I collected a sample and off to the lab it went!
We received the results two weeks later and...
Over 500! Not only are her levels sufficient, but I believe they are considered NORMAL.
We will continue to monitor her and hope that we stay enzyme free!
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