Up before alarm at 0600. Out of the house by 0727, arrived hospital 0745, and processed at 0800, 15 minutes before my scheduled time of 0815. The clinic extracted a huge amount of blood. At the last blood test (almost two years ago) there were just two sample vials. Today there was a double line of blood vials, standing as erect as a company of British redcoats on parade.

Then I was provided with a cup and given a second tube for a urine sample. I had been careful to drink water before leaving the house (no other food or beverage was permitted in the 12 hours prior to the blood extraction) but, when I retreated to the sanctum of the washroom, I was unable to perform on demand. I had to spend a great deal of time coaxing myself into providing a sample.

Dr N has requested a test for an anti-body to glutamate: Anti-Transglutaminase. My self developed course, “How to Perform Brain Surgery at Home,” has provided me with the following understanding:

• That some forms of brain injury involve mechanical puncture wounds, or similar physical affront, to regions of the brain.
• That mTBI, and concussion injuries, involve a different injury mechanism.
• That high acceleration forces applied to the brain, and high degrees of rotational torque, will result in the disconnection of the neural network due to the fact that different portions of the brain are of different densities and will therefore experience different levels of acceleration. This differential acceleration damages the neural interconnections within the brain.
• That these form of injuries do not involve the physical damage associated with a puncture wound, or foreign object embedding, but may have effects more severe than penetrating trauma.
• That nerve cells utilize a substance known as glutamate. Glutamate is highly toxic. Should a single cell release glutamate into the brain cavity then this release of toxic material may result in other cells also releasing glutamate into the brain cavity.
• That the outcome of these releases is a toxic cascade event and it is this chemical cascade that is responsible for concussion, and mTBI injuries, not any mechanical damage to brain matter.
• That this glutamate release is implicated in some of the signs I have experienced such as the skin lesions found on my left forearm, and on other parts of my body.
• That this glutamate release results in the creation of anti-bodies and these anti-bodies provide physical evidence of the injury.

Dr N has requested that my blood be tested for this anti-body. But it has now been almost three years since the date of the accident. I do not know how long these anti-bodies persist in the body. My skin lesions have been in remission for over three months as I have been careful to eliminate all trigger foods from my diet. All tests have detection thresholds. What I do not know is if I still have sufficient anti-bodies present three years after the accident. Are there enough anti-bodies to be detected by the blood work?

I will not know the answer to this question until March 5th.

——————————————————————————

Update 18/05/14 – The glutamate test has nothing to do with salicylates which are believed to be the cause of my skin lesions. The glutamate test is intended to determine if I am sensitive to gluten, or have some form of celiac disease. The results were negative.