Celiac Disease

Celiac Disease: Introduction

A genetic digestive intolerance to gluten in the diet caused by damage to the intestinal villi with an underlying autoimmune cause. Celiac is believed to be one of the most under-diagnosed and thus misdiagnosed conditions in America. Although the diagnosis rate is about 1 in 5000, the actual estimated prevalence may be as high as 1 in 250. Celiac disease is poorly understood by many American doctors, and may be misdiagnosed as various other digestive disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Symptoms of Celiac Disease

• Digestive symptoms - some people will notice digestive symptoms such as:
  • Diarrhea
  • Abdominal pain
  • Abdominal bloating
  • Pale stool
• more symptoms...»

See full list of 35 symptoms of Celiac Disease

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical testing related to Celiac Disease:

• Food Allergies & Intolerances: Home Testing:
  • Home Food Allergy Tests
  • Home Food Intolerance Testing
  • Home Water Testing
  • Home Lead Poisoning Tests
  • Home Heavy Metal Poisoning Tests
• Digestive-Related Home Testing:
  • Home Stomach Ulcer Tests
  • Home Colorectal Cancer Test Kits
  • Home Fecal Occult Bleeding Test Kits
• more tests...»

Celiac Disease: Complications

Review possible medical complications related to Celiac Disease:

• Lymphoma
• Adenocarcinoma
• Osteoporosis
• Miscarriage
• Congenital defects - in babies born to celiac mothers
• Short stature - if celiac causes malnutrition in childhood
• more complications...»

Medical Textbooks Online about Celiac Disease

Book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Diagnostic Tests for Celiac Disease

• Gluten antibodies
• Antigliadin antibody test
• Anti-endomysium antibody test
• Antireticulin antibody test
• Small intestine biopsy
• more tests...»

See full list of 6 diagnostic tests for Celiac Disease

Wrongly Diagnosed with Celiac Disease?

• Misdiagnosis of Celiac Disease
• Failure to diagnose Celiac Disease
• Hidden causes of Celiac Disease (possibly wrongly diagnosed)
• Undiagnosed: Celiac Disease

Celiac Disease: Medical Mistakes

• Crohn's Disease -- Health Mistakes
• Ulcerative Colitis -- Health Mistakes
• Celiac Disease -- Health Mistakes
• more mistakes...»

Celiac Disease: Marketplace Products, Discounts & Offers

Products, offers and promotion categories available for Celiac Disease:

• Digestive Health
• more product offers...»

Celiac Disease: Undiagnosed Conditions

Commonly undiagnosed diseases in related medical categories:

• Chronic Digestive Disorders that can remain Undiagnosed:
  • Crohn's Disease -- Undiagnosed
  • Ulcerative Colitis -- Undiagnosed
  • Celiac Disease -- Undiagnosed
  • Heartburn -- Undiagnosed
  • GERD -- Undiagnosed
  • Inflammatory Bowel Disease -- Undiagnosed
  • Irritable Bowel Syndrome -- Undiagnosed
  • Carcinoid Syndrome -- Undiagnosed
  • Pancreatitis -- Undiagnosed
• more undiagnosed conditions...»

Misdiagnosis and Celiac Disease

Chronic digestive conditions often misdiagnosed: When diagnosing chronic symptoms of the digestive tract, there are a variety of conditions that may be misdiagnosed. The best known, irritable...read more »

Intestinal bacteria disorder may be hidden cause: One of the lesser known causes of diarrhea is an imbalance of bacterial in the gut, sometimes...read more »

Antibiotics often causes diarrhea: The use of antibiotics are very likely to cause some level of diarrhea in patients. The reason is that antibiotics kill...read more »

Food poisoning may actually be an infectious disease: Many people who come down with "stomach symptoms" like diarrhea assume that it's "something I ate" (i.e. food poisoning)...read more »

Mesenteric adenitis misdiagnosed as appendicitis in children: Because appendicitis is one of the more feared conditions for a child with abdominal pain, it can be over-diagnosed (it...read more »

Celiac disease often fails to be diagnosed cause of chronic digestive symptoms: One of the most common chronic digestive conditions is celiac disease, a malabsorption...read more »

Undiagnosed celiac disease in pregnancy harms fetus: The failure to diagnose the common but less known digestive disease celiac disease (see symptoms of celiac disease) is linked to adverse fetal outcomes. See misdiagnosis of celiac...read more »

Vitamin B12 deficiency under-diagnosed: The condition of Vitamin B12 deficiency is a possible misdiagnosis of various conditions, such as multiple sclerosis (see symptoms of multiple sclerosis). See ...read more »

Chronic digestive diseases hard to diagnose: There is an inherent difficulty in diagnosing the various types of chronic digestive diseases. Some of the better known possibilities are peptic ulcer, colon cancer, ...read more »

Widely underdiagnosed- Coeliac disease: Coeliac disease is a widely underdiagnosed condition as most patients present with non gastrointestinal symptoms such as...read more »

Treat chronic diarrhoea seriously: Diarrhoea can be quite frightening and stressful for the patient. Serious disorders such as colorectal carcinoma must be considered in patients who present with a gradual onset of...read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Celiac Disease

Celiac Disease: Research Doctors & Specialists

Research related physicians and medical specialists:

• Digestive Health Specialists (Gastroenterology):
  • Gastroenterology (Digestive Specialists)
  • Pediatric Gastroenterology (Child Digestive Health)
• more specialists...»

Other doctor, physician and specialist research services:

• Rate Your Doctor Online
• Research Your Doctor Online
• Review Patient Surveys About Your Doctor
• Research local specialists including ratings, affiliations, and sanctions.

Hospitals & Clinics: Celiac Disease

Research quality ratings and patient safety measures for medical facilities in specialties related to Celiac Disease:

• Digestive Health (Gastroenterology) -- Hospital Quality Ratings
• more hospital ratings...»

Hospital & Clinic quality ratings » »

Choosing the Best Hospital: More general information, not necessarily in relation to Celiac Disease, on hospital performance and surgical care quality:

• 50 Best Hospitals Report
• Outstanding Patient Experinece Award Winning Hospitals
• Women's Health Best Hospitals
• Patient Safety
• Hospital Quality and Clinical Excellence Study (2009)

Celiac Disease: Rare Types

Rare types of diseases and disorders in related medical categories:

• Chronic Digestive Disorders -- Rare Types:
  • Crohn's Disease -- Rare Types
  • Ulcerative Colitis -- Rare Types
  • Celiac Disease -- Rare Types
  • Inflammatory Bowel Disease -- Rare Types
  • Irritable Bowel Syndrome -- Rare Types
  • Carcinoid Syndrome -- Rare Types
  • Pancreatitis -- Rare Types
  • Gallstones -- Rare Types
  • Lactose Intolerance -- Rare Types
• more rare diseases...»

Causes of Celiac Disease

Read more about causes of Celiac Disease.

More information about causes of Celiac Disease:

• Triggers for Celiac Disease
• Celiac Disease as a complication caused by other conditions
• Celiac Disease as a symptom
• Medical news summaries relating to Causes of Celiac Disease

Treatments for Celiac Disease

• Gluten-free diet - avoiding various foods including wheat, rye, barley, and oats.
• Vitamin supplements
• Mineral supplements
• Intravenous nutrition supplements - for severe cases not responding to the gluten-free diet.
• Copper - possibly used for related copper deficiency
• more treatments...»

See full list of 6 treatments for Celiac Disease

Latest Treatments for Celiac Disease

• Removal of gluten from diet
• Dietician education
• Steroids
• Azathioprine
• Cyclosporin
• more treatments...»

See full list of 9 latest treatments for Celiac Disease

News Archives for Celiac Disease

Medical news articles related to Celiac Disease include:

• Genetic Link Between Type 1 Diabetes, Celiac Disease Seen
• Intestinal Gluten Receptor Is Gateway for Celiac Disease
• Health Tip: Symptoms of Celiac Disease in Adults
• Health Tip: Signs of Celiac Disease in Children
• Advances Aid Treatment, Diagnosis of Celiac Disease
• Test Detects Sensitivity to HIV Drug
• Cocaine Use Dulls Brain's Sensitivity to Rewards
• more health news...»

Source: HealthDay News

Evidence Based Medicine Research for Celiac Disease

Medical research articles related to Celiac Disease include:

• Coeliac disease.
• Perinatal risk factors and coeliac disease in children and young adults: a record linkage study
• Clinical trial: gluten microchallenge with wheat-based starch hydrolysates in coeliac disease patients - a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to evaluate safety
• In a patient who develops coeliac symptoms, is it possible to have a normal TTG blood test before their symptoms develop? ie does a previous normal TTG preclude the need to repeat if a patient develops new symptoms?
• Cost-effectiveness analysis of strategies for diagnosing celiac disease
• Coeliac disease
• Coeliac Disease
• Point of care testing for Coeliac disease
• more research...»

Click here to find more evidence-based articles on the TRIP Database

Videos for Celiac Disease

Patient Surveys for Celiac Disease

• Patient Profile Survey
  Take Survey  View Results
• Survey about the symptoms of your Celiac Disease
  Take Survey  View Results

Reseach about Celiac Disease

Visit our research pages for current research about Celiac Disease treatments.

Clinical Trials for Celiac Disease

The US based website ClinicalTrials.gov lists information on both federally and privately supported clinical trials using human volunteers.

Some of the clinical trials listed on ClinicalTrials.gov for Celiac Disease include:

• Gluten-Free Diet in Patients With Gluten Sensitivity and Cerebellar Ataxia - This study has been completed (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Multicenter Study on the Toxicity of Gluten Traces in the Treatment of Celiac Disease - This study has been terminated (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Citrulline: A Plasmatic Marker to Assess and Monitor Small Bowel Crohn's Disease Patients - This study has been completed (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Can a Very High Result From a Screening Test for Celiac Disease Be Used to Diagnose Celiac Disease? - This study is currently recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Safety and Tolerability Study of AT1001 in Celiac Disease Subjects. - This study is currently recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - AT1001
• more trials...»

See full list of 6 Clinical Trials for Celiac Disease

Prevention of Celiac Disease

Prevention information for Celiac Disease has been compiled from various data sources and may be inaccurate or incomplete. None of these methods guarantee prevention of Celiac Disease.

• Vitamin B12 - possibly used for prevention of Vitamin B12 deficiency
• more preventions...»

Read more about prevention of Celiac Disease

Statistics for Celiac Disease

• Medical statistics for Celiac Disease
• Prevalence and incidence statistics for Celiac Disease
• Death and Mortality statistics for Celiac Disease
• Society statistics for Celiac Disease

Celiac Disease: Broader Related Topics

• Autoimmune diseases
• Digestive Diseases
• Chronic digestive diseases
• more types...»

Types of Celiac Disease

Curable Types of Celiac Disease

Possibly curable types of Celiac Disease include:

• Type 1 diabetes related celiac disease
• Behaviour disorders related celiac disease
• more types...»

Rare Types of Celiac Disease:

Rare types of Celiac Disease include:

• Down's syndrome associated celiac disease
• William's syndrome associated celiac disease
• Turner syndrome associated celiac disease
• Type 1 diabetes related celiac disease
• Psychiatric disorders related celiac disease
• Unresponsive celiac disease
• Autoimmune thyroid disease associated Celiac Disease
• Collagenous celiac disease
• more types...»

Stories from Users Related to Celiac Disease

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• Too sensitive--need help!
• sensitive to touch or other sensations,
• Celiac or Crohns?
• Celiac?
• If you have any suspicion you might have Celiac Disease...
• Celiac/gluten intolerance or something else?
• Salt allergy/intolerance - Please help
• Trying a glueten free diet...any Celiacs out there?
• Celiac Questions???
• Irritating Pain/Over-Sensitivity on Glans
• dr says celiac..no symptoms
• Celiac's Disease and Parathesia
• Water and Fibre Sensitivity
• Extremely sensitive penis.
• celiac disease

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User Interactive Forums

Read about other experiences, ask a question about Celiac Disease, or answer someone else's question, on our message boards:

• I can not get a diagnosis. Please help.
• Tell us your medical story.
• Share your misdiagnosis story.
• What is the best treatment for this?
• See all the forums.

Article Excerpts about Celiac Disease

Celiac disease is a digestive disease that damages the small intestine and interferes with absorption of nutrients from food. People who have celiac disease cannot tolerate a protein called gluten, which is found in wheat, rye, barley, and possibly oats. When people with celiac disease eat foods containing gluten, their immune system responds by damaging the small intestine. Specifically, tiny fingerlike protrusions, called villi, on the lining of the small intestine are lost. Nutrients from food are absorbed into the bloodstream through these villi. Without villi, a person becomes malnourished--regardless of the quantity of food eaten.

Because the body's own immune system causes the damage, celiac disease is considered an autoimmune disorder. However, it is also classified as a disease of malabsorption because nutrients are not absorbed. Celiac disease is also known as celiac sprue, nontropical sprue, and gluten-sensitive enteropathy. (Source: excerpt from Celiac Disease: NIDDK)

Definitions of Celiac Disease:

A malabsorption syndrome that is precipitated by the ingestion of GLUTEN-containing foods, such as wheat, rye, and barley. It is characterized by INFLAMMATION of the SMALL INTESTINE, loss of MICROVILLI structure, failed INTESTINAL ABSORPTION, and MALNUTRITION. - (Source - Diseases Database)

A disorder in children and adults; inability to tolerate wheat protein (gluten); symptoms include foul-smelling diarrhea and emaciation; often accompanied by lactose intolerance - (Source - WordNet 2.1)

Ophanet, a consortium of European partners, currently defines a condition rare when it affects 1 person per 2,000. They list Celiac Disease as a "rare disease".
Source - Orphanet