Test for Celiac Disease?

I want my husband tested for Celiac disease because he has so many symptoms. Will he need to fast before this test?

his symptoms, that he's had for years and years: chronic urgent/loose bowels (colonoscopy said he was fine), chronic rash all over, psoriasis on his feet, weak tooth enamel, underactive thyroid that has not yet responded to medication.

Any celiac information appreciated! Thanks.

Hi. I hoep I can help.
The first step by nearly any GI doc who is worth his salt is a blood test. This is less invasive and gives a good baseline for the patients health. The blood test needs to test for specific things, go to www.csaceliacs.org and click Diagnosis for a complete blood test list. Most importantly, he MUST eat gluten prior to the test. He needs to be eating gluten foods for at least several weeks prior to testing or the test will be inaccurate.
While u are at www.csaceliacs.org u can look up your local support group. Every support group has a doc on file to refer suspected Celiacs to. They can tell u who the good GI's are in your area.
The 'gold standard' for diagnosing CD is an ENDOSCOPY with biopsy. (again refer to the csaceliacs.org site for more medical info). A colonoscopy can be done also but the endo is the true test.
However, some ppl will fail both the bloodt est and the endo. Why? Well several reasons:
Not significant damage done to intestines to be seen by doc.
Lab error in blood work
Patient not eating enough gluten prior to test (the damage cant be caused if gluten isnt eaten.)
Doctor error (doc not familiar enough with CD)


If he has the rash I actually suggest you try the dermatologist first. There is a VERY specific rash taht ONLY Celiacs get. Celiacs call it DH for short (again see the csaceliacs.org site for the exact name, its long and hard to spell). A good dermatologist can biopsy the rash and have it examined. If it tests positive for DH the patient ABSOLUTELY has Celiac and there is NO need for any further gastro testing!! So although the rash is annoying, it can help save time and aggrivation of the gastro testing.

Also there is genetic testing either by a willing doctor or at home. To do it at home try www.enterolab.com. I found them very professional and helpful. If he carries the Celiac gene then that does not necessarily mean he has an active case of Celiac (altho the symptoms suggest so) but that he carries the gene and in time CD WILL be triggered and he will need to be gluten free. 97% of Celiacs carry the gene(s).

I hope this helps and please feel free to email me for further help!
Here are some other sites and resources u may find helpful.
www.celiac.com
www.celiac.org

Celiac Disease a Hidden Epidemic by Dr Peter Green (the Celiac 'expert')

The way they confirm celiac is that they do a colonoscopy and look at the intestines. Your intestines are covered in tiny little finger-like protrusions that make up the surface of it. These are what absorb the nutrients. In celiac disease you can not break down gluten (found in certain grains mostly) and those protrusions are literally scraped down to nothing. You then can not absorb nutrients and you get vitamin deficiencies and such which cause things like weak tooth enamel and anemia.

A colonscopy is where they put a camera into the intestines and just look around. He will need to fast and take laxatives to completely clear out his intestines so that the camera can see clearly. Even if he doesn't have celiac this is the same test that's done for prostate and colon cancer screenings that men are encouraged to get regularly so it's a win-win situation. Take him in and talk to the doctor about checking him.

BTW, just because the colonoscopy was fine before does not mean that it wouldn't show anything now. The wearing down occurs slowly over time and will be more visible over time. The damage is also done mostly in the smaller intestine which doctors often neglect to look at.

In the meantime he can stop eating gluten and see if it helps. Even if he is found to have celiac all they are going to say is 'stop eating gluten'. You can just look up gluten and go from there.

The "gold standard " test for Celiac's disease is a colon biopsy. Not cheap or totally without risks. You can get blood tests , but they don't provide a definate diagnosis. My son has had similar problems over the past 3 years and we have k indof narrowed down the possibilities to Celiacs as well. We did not have the intestinal biopsy done. But have over the course of time eliminated almost all wheat and gluten products from his diet. He has gotten so sensitive that even the tiniest trace of wheat will result in serious symptoms. Try going to the celiac/sprue websites and using Red Mill, Namaste, or Authentic flours and mixes. They have been very helpful. to us. We originally thought he had a lactose problem but along with elimination of milk, we had to eliminate morning ceral and that got us pointed in the right direction. We just went cold turkey and eliminated all wheat and gluten for twoweeks out of despiration. He feels so much better now., but you will have to read and reread every label.

Hello! My husband was just diagnosed in May. He had to do a colonoscopy (to check for polyps) and also an upper GI. He was put into a "twilight sleep" so he doesn't remember anything about the procedure. He did have to fast the night before. I think he had to stop eating by 6pm. He had to take some stuff to "clear out" his system. (The stuff they gave him was much more gentle than the Fleets oral enema -- >>shiver<<) He said that if he had to do it again he wouldn't mind because he really doesn't remember a thing about it. DO NOT GO GLUTEN FREE BEFORE THE TESTS or you may come back with a false negative result.

The thing that your husband really needs to keep foremost in his mind is that once the testing is done and the diagnosis is reached, he will start to feel better.

The gluten free diet is a bit of a change. For the first month after the diagnosis, I prepared foods that were already naturally gluten free. (ex. steak and baked potato, baked chicken, roast beef, etc. For any gravies I just thickened with cornstarch) Then I introduced the gluten free stuff in. I think the first thing I made was gf buckwheat pancakes. My husband acted as if they were Manna from Heaven :) Bette Hagman writes the Gluten Free Gourmet cookbooks which have been really helpful. I've bought most of them now but I started by checking them out from the library.

Here's a link to a lecture that was presented to medical students at the University of California. It was posted to YouTube by the University of California Television (the video is long but worth the viewing):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QR2LvQmoF...

I hope the doctors can come to the right diagnosis so that your husband will feel better soon! Good luck to you both!!!

Yes, please get him tested. The testing should start with blood work testing for celiac disease and possibly an endoscopy(upper GI which isn't too bad). The only requirements for the blood work are that you have to be currently eating gluten products or it will invalidate the test. The doctor will give directions for the endoscopy.
The gluten free diet is the only way to treat celiac disease at this time. I went on the diet over 5 years ago and all my symptoms cleared up, I am medicine free and feel the best of my life right now. Look at the websites below and I have found the book to be especially useful in understanding the different ailments that seem to be caused by CD.
There are a lot of cookbooks and products available for gluten free eating. I found when I started it was easiest to just eat fresh fruit and vegetables and unprocessed meat. Avoid soups and sauces until you learn to read the labels for hidden gluten. Then slowly add in foods starting with favorites.