Does It Matter ‘How’ You Were Diagnosed with Celiac Disease?
Guidelines call for performing duodenal biopsy analysis in individuals with symptoms of celiac disease to confirm the diagnosis.
- Journal Summaries in Internal Medicine, mdlinx.com 1
Researchers compared the demographics, diagnoses, symptoms, and treatment of patients with celiac disease diagnosed by biopsy analysis vs patients with a diagnosis based on results of serology tests.
They analyzed data from iCureCeliac (a voluntary, patient-powered research network hosted and distributed by the Celiac Disease Foundation) from January 30, 2016 through August 25, 2016. The results as follows:
- Diagnosis not based on a duodenal biopsy was found in 21% of adult participants with celiac disease.
- Non-gastroenterologists had a higher likelihood of making this diagnosis based on serology results.
- Patients with a diagnosis based on serology results were less likely to seek nutritional counseling and had a higher tendency to use dietary supplements.
Conclusion: Patients with a diagnosis based on serology results were more likely to be diagnosed by non-gastroenterologists, less likely to seek nutritional counseling, and more likely to use dietary supplements. Patients require more education about management of celiac disease and referral to gastroenterologists for duodenal biopsy confirmation of their disease.
Read the complete study here: https://www.cghjournal.org/article/S1542-3565(18)30967-4/fulltext?rss=yes
1 https://www.mdlinx.com/journal-summaries/celiac-disease-gluten-free-diet-biopsy/2018/09/12/7544158/
