Electrophoresis

It can be done on any body fluid.

Although it is typically used for serum electrophoresis to lok for Immunoglobulin bands.

Its normal pattern shows the following:

One is typically looking for gammopathy. It may be myeloma or MGUS (monoclonal gammopathy of unknown significance = although we now know that 25% will develop myeloma over 20 years).

In myeloma, one typically sees patients who are elderly, bone pains/back pain/bone lesions/gammopathy and bone marrow infiltration by immature plasma cells. The commonest type is IgG myeloma then IgA and IgD. When there is proliferation of IgM, it is called Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia.

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