Celiac Disease Possible in Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis Patients with no Celiac Symptoms

Celiac.com 12/13/2021 - Celiac disease is potentially connected to juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).  A team of researchers recently set out to determine the serological incidence of celiac disease in patients with JIA. 

For their study, the team enrolled seventy-eight patients children under 16 years of age with JIA, who had not responded well to routine treatment, and who visited the pediatric centers of Tehran University of Medical Sciences between 2017 and 2019. The team also assessed the various manifestations of celiac disease, and measured celiac disease-related serological screening tests. 

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Average subject age was about 8 years old, plus or minus about 4 years. years. Three patients with oligoarticular JIA had Anti-TTG-Ab levels above normal. None had celiac symptoms. 

Data showed no significant statistical differences in terms of growth disorders, sex distribution, and different subtypes of JIA between the sero-positive and sero-negative groups. 

The team confirmed one case of celiac disease by pathology, and recommended a gluten-free diet for the patient. 

Their main takeaway from the data is that celiac disease is still possible, even in JIA patients with no celiac symptoms.

Read more in the Archives of Iranian Medicine. 2021 Oct 1;24(10):783-785.

The research team included N Payman Sadeghi, Kobra Salari, Vahid Ziaee, Nima Rezaei, and Kambiz Eftekhari. They are variously affiliated with the Children's Medical Center, Pediatrics Center of Excellence, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; the Pediatric Rheumatology Iranian Society; the Research Center for Immunodeficiencies, Children's Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; the Pediatric Gastroenterology and Hepatology Research Center, Children's Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran and the Department of Pediatrics, Bahrami Children's Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.