Detection of celiac disease in high risk groups of children

Abstract EN

Background : the debate on the true prevalence of celiac disease (CD) has been revived by increasing recognition of varied disease presentations, reliability of easily available serologic testing and efforts to screen large numbers of asymptomatic and at-risk population.

Until approximately a decade ago, CD was considered uncommon even in the Western world, with a prevalence of 1 in 1000 or lower.

Recent studies from Europe and America Screening healthy populations have reported the disease to be more common than previously realized, with prevalence reported between 1 in 82 and 1 in 300 persons.

CD, as of today, to say to exist in almost all parts of the world, although it is rare among people of purely African-Caribbean, Japanese and Chinese background. Aims : the aim of this study is to determine prevalence of celiac disease in a sample of considered risk groups of children. Methods : the study included 90 Patients.

their ages ranged from 1-18 years from outpatient-Pediatric clinic-Al Zahraa Hospital-Faculty of Medicine- Al-Azhar University.

Patients were selected and divided into 3 groups : group 1 with chronic diarrhea, group II with short stature and group III with IDDM. All groups were subjected to medical and dietary history, anthropometric measures and serological tests including : IgG antigliadin by ELISA, IgA antireticulin by immunofluorescence, IgA anti endomysium by immunofluorescence, Antibodies to tissue transglutaminase by ELISA.

Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and small intestinal biopsies were done to 68 cases. Results : in our study, prevalence of TD in those at risk group was 20/90 (%23.3),9/30 (30%) in group I, II respectively, while in group III prevalence 2./30 (6.6%) was Conclusion : CD was not uncommon in the studied high risk groups.

Serological tests could be used for screening population and for early identification of suspected patients, to be confirmed by biopsy.