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Diagnosis help


Kaatzal
Go to solution Solved by trents,

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Kaatzal Newbie


I am getting very confused with the process of getting a diagnosis of potentially coeliac disease.

I have been having all of the symptoms associated with coeliac disease so I cut out gluten and saw an improvement. I have visited a gastroenterologist and he tested me for genes that might lead to coeliac disease. I have tested positive for one of these genes (he hasn’t specified which). 

I had a blood test and to check for coeliac disease and it tested negative but I had stopped eating gluten for a few weeks before this test. So this test was ruled unreliable.

However, a few years ago I was tested for coeliac disease whilst I was eating gluten (had no symptoms at this time) and the test was negative. Due to the result of this test, the gastroenterologist is saying that I definitely do not have coeliac disease as he believes it would have tested positive even though I wasn’t having symptoms. 

I have been reading papers and information on the Coeliac U.K. website and it says that Coeliac disease can be developed at any time. This seems to be contradicting information.

Any help would be greatly appreciated


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plumbago Experienced

The only way to reliably know if you have active disease is to go back to eating gluten, wait, and then repeat the comprehensive celiac panel.

From NHS Inform:

Before a blood test is taken, it's important that you eat gluten-containing foods in more than one meal every day for at least 6 weeks before the test. Remember to eat a normal gluten diet for 6 weeks before any tests.

Wheatwacked Veteran
18 minutes ago, Kaatzal said:

the gastroenterologist is saying that I definitely do not have coeliac disease as he believes it would have tested positive even though I wasn’t having symptoms. 

He is wrong.  It is not uncommon for it to take 10 or more years to be diagnosed with misdiagnoses of other diseases along the way.

"To make matters more challenging, celiac symptoms can also mimic symptoms of other diseases, such as anemia, Crohns disease, gastric ulcers, irritable bowel, parasitic infection, even various skin disorders or nervous conditions."

 

  • Solution
trents Grand Master

The onset of celiac disease can happen at any stage of life. Before onset you will possess the genetic potential but all other tests will be negative.

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    • trents
      @cristiana, I'm thinking the intensity of our response to the same amount of gluten can vary from time to time. Our bodies are a dynamic entity. 
    • Scott Adams
      I'm going to try Jersey Mike's soon--we have one nearby. Thanks for sharing!
    • cristiana
      Hi @trents Two things can happen:  1/ For a very small gluten hit, I will get a slightly sore stomach for a few days, maybe a day or two following the glutening, and (TMI warning) maybe slightly loose BMs with mucus  for a couple of days.  2/ For a substantial glutening, and thankfully it's only happened once in recent years,  I get bad chills, followed by vomiting, and my heartbeat is all over the place and I can hardly stand.  It's pretty extreme.  That happens within about 2 hours of eating the gluten.  I might feel slightly dizzy for a couple of days after the glutening episode. Interestingly I've just been out to a cafe which hitherto has made a big thing about how their french fries are cooked in a separate fryer.  I shared some with a friend and they were served with chilli sauce, jalapenos, cheddar cheese and fried onions.  Definitely not health food!  Anyway,  I'd eaten half when I realised I'd not checked the menu to ensure that this dish is still gluten-free - and it turns out it isn't!!!  They've changed the ingredients and the fried onions are now cooked with wheat.   I came home expecting to feel dreadful as I had no idea how much gluten I have consumed but so far if anything I feel just little queasy.  I think I'd have thrown up by now had there been a lot of gluten in the onions.  
    • trents
      It might be wise to start him on small amounts and work up to 10g. Monitor how he reacts. Some people simply cannot complete the gluten challenge because it makes them too ill. By the way, you can buy powdered gluten in health food stores, at least here in the states you can. With a food scale, it would be easy to measure the amount being consumed in a day. I'm not sure what the intensity of reaction to gluten tells you about what's actually going on with regard to celiac disease. I mean there are some celiacs like me who don't seem to react to minor exposure amounts but who get violently ill with larger exposures. Then there are celiacs who get some kind of reaction to even the tiniest amount of exposure but don't necessarily get violently ill. And how the reaction manifests itself is very different for different people. Some, like me, experience emesis and diarrhea. Others just get brain fog. Others get joint pain. It's all over the map.
    • melthebell
      That's interesting - that's a lot of gluten! I'll be very curious to see how my son responds to the gluten. In some ways, I guess having a strong reaction would tell us something? It's tough navigating this as a parent and having it be not so clear cut ;\
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