What can cause a single minimally reactive FTA-Abs test?

[Sean179]

I’m an otherwise healthy male, married 20+ years.  I had a minimally reactive FTA-Abs following several months of fatigue, abdominal pain, nausea and the onset of neuropathy and autonomic issues.  Repeat testing has been negative however the neurological issues and autonomic symptoms have progressed with elevated CSF protein for over a year now (low cell counts, neg CSF VDRL).  What other conditions can cause the FTA to be weekly positive, RPR negative and cause elevated CSF protein with associated neurological issues?

[auntiejessi]

Are you under the care of a neurologist? If you aren't, you should be.

[Sean179]

Yes.  Diagnosed with neuropathy and chronic pain (‘idiopathic’).  

[auntiejessi]

Good, glad to hear that you are getting the proper care.

Here's a journal article on false positives on this test:

https://escholarship.org/uc/item/54f9m4sr

"Although the FTA-ABS test has an overall high specificity (98 %), false-positive reactions have also been reported in a variety of acute and chronic diseases, such as mixed connective tissue disease, autoimmune disease, diabetes mellitus, alcoholic cirrhosis, viral infections, and pregnancy [2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. For example, in various autoimmune diseases, specificity falls to 67.7 percent because of a high number of false-positive results [7]. "

There's more to it, which you can read, but it sounds as if you definitely have something else happening.

Best of luck!

[auntiejessi]

I am no expert in this, and it's for a different forum, but have they investigated Guillain–Barré or dysautonomia for you?  Just suggestions that come to mind, and I don't know all your symptoms, so I could be way off base.

[biology2017]

Sounds like some neuropathy issues.
It might suggests a early stage syphilis infection.
It could also be other treponematoses.