The ANA test is not specific for lupus

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" The ANA test is not specific for lupus. This means that people with

other diseases can also have a high ANA. Elevated blood ANA levels are

found in a number of other disorders including some with symptoms

similar to lupus.

Sometimes this leads to confusion and a diagnosis of lupus is made in

someone with another disorder just because the ANA test is abnormal.

Much research has been done to expand and refine the ANA test in order

to help find a test more specific for lupus. Although the ANA levels in

the blood are generally higher in untreated lupus patients than in

patients with other diseases, this is not always so. A diagnosis of

lupus, therefore, cannot be made only on the basis of a high ANA. It is

helpful to know in diagnosing lupus that the ANA is actually a group of

antibodies directed against different parts of cells within our bodies.

in laboratories with special equipment, these antibodies can now be

detected individually. Some of these individual antibodies are very

specific for the diagnosis of lupus. "

To read more on this:

http://www.mtio.com/lupus/lal_2.htm