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rml97

By rml97
in Doctors

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rml97 Rookie
rml97
Posted

I had an awful experience with Dr, Jeffery Hyams... He is a pediatric GI doctor who is unwilling to accept the fact the there are millions of people with gluten intolerances in our world. He decided becasue I was 13- 14 I was at that age where eating disorders developed... He wouldn't take into account that everytime I put food in my mouth I was doubled over in pain or that I was an athlete who loved to be outside and play soccer. It wasn't even a doctor who cured me, it was a nutritionist. She took one look at me and said "you have the coloring of someone who would have a gluten intolerance... have you ever heard of a gluten free diet?" It had been 4 months and -16 pounds so I was ready to try anything and sure enough the pain became to subside after 4 days and was completly gone within 2 weeks.

To say the least I blame the fact that I still don't have an appetite souly on Dr. Hyams. If he wasn't so willing to write me off with an eating disorder my intestines wouldn't be so damaged and have to take so long to heal. I want to start going to a doctor who would understand considering my last experience with GI doctors was so terrible, but I'm not sure who....

  • 2 months later...
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maitrimama Apprentice
maitrimama
Posted

I totally disagree, Dr. Jeffrey Hyams and his team at Connecticut Children's Medical Center are fantastic!We are very grateful that he was put in our path and I think I mentioned Dr Hyams by name in a post ~1 year ago. Based on our experience I would recommend Dr Hyams to family and friends of ours.

In July of 2011 my teenage daughter (15 at that time) was having stomach problems, nothing earth shattering, diarrhea and cramping but the fact that she mentioned it to me and her father made us take notice. Her pediatrician ordered blood, urine and stool tests. The blood test came back positive for celiac's disease and also indicated she was having absorbtion problems. The stool sample had both white and red blood cells in it. Her pediatrician referred us to Dr Hyams. The very next day Dr Hyams contacted us after reviewing our daughter's test results. He retested her stool and got the same results so he scheduled an endoscopy and colonoscopy for the next week. Biopsies indicated she has Celiac's and IBD. The first meeting we had after the biopsies was a 3 hour affair and ee met with Dr Hyams and my daughter was introduced to her team which included a nutritionist, a nurse and a coordinator who all work directly with Dr Hyams. They have all been great.

Unfortunately, because of insurance changes, we had to switch Drs. We are lucky because my daughter's new Dr is working out very well. The new Dr is at Yale New Haven Hospital. After she went through all the records and test results she said that she felt that Dr Hyams had made a vert good diagnosis that she agreed with. She also pointed out that because she has both Celiac's and IBD (which has been indentified specifically to be Ulcerative Colitis) it is not an easy or common case and that she has been in good hands.

I am sorry that you had a negative experience but our experience has reflected what kind, caring and knowledgable pediatric gi Dr Jeffrey Hyams is!

mushroom Proficient
mushroom
Posted

With due respect for your feelings about Dr. Hyams, maitrimama, your experience was a little different from the OP's in that Dr. Hyams was presented with a diagnosis by blood test of celiac. He was not asked by you to make the decision as to whether or not to test for celiac disease. This tends to be the critical factor for celiacs -- finding someone who is willing to test for it. Many of us have not been tested and have self-diagnosed because doctors cast us aside for whatever reason.

You should be very grateful to your daughter's pediatrician. :)

maitrimama Apprentice
maitrimama
Posted

Dr Hyams was not presented with a diagnosis, he was presented with preliminary test results and then ordered additional tests. No diagnosis was made until all the test results were in and analyzed. It turned out to be a complicated diagnosis and I appreciate his concervative approach.

Though my experience with Dr Hyams may be coming from a different side of the equation,I am an educated, well informed person and I won't sit back and watch Dr Hyams be bashed without giving my opinion.

mushroom Proficient
mushroom
Posted

Many doctors now will diagnose on the basis of symptoms, positive blood tests and response to the diet. However, I did misspeak when I said "diagnosed". He was presented with positive blood tests for celiac, and merely ordered the biopsy to confirm the diagnosis.

Without "bashing" Dr. Hyams, I think he should re-evaluate his stance that there is no such thing as non-celiac gluten intolerance. There are millions of people in the world who would strongly disagree with him, including now Dr. Alessio Fasano.

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    • catnapt
      how much gluten do I need to eat before blood tests?

      By catnapt · Posted

      after several years of issues with a para-gland issue, my endo has decided it's a good idea for me to be tested for celiac disease. I am 70 yrs old and stunned to learn that you can get celiac this late in life. I have just gradually stopped eating most foods that contain gluten over the past several years- they just make me feel ill- although I attributed it to other things like bread spiking blood sugar- or to the things I ate *with* the bread or crackers etc   I went to a party in Nov and ate a LOT of a vegan roast made with vital wheat gluten- as well as stuffing, rolls and pie crust... and OMG I was so sick! the pain, the bloating, the gas, the nausea... I didn't think it would ever end (but it did) and I was ready to go the ER but it finally subsided.   I mentioned this to my endo and now she wants me to be tested for celiac after 2 weeks of being on gluten foods. She has kind of flip flopped on how much gluten I should eat, telling me that if the symptoms are severe I can stop. I am eating 2-3 thin slices of bread per day (or english muffins) and wow- it does make me feel awful. But not as bad as when I ate that massive amnt of vital wheat gluten. so I will continue on if I have to... but what bothers me is - if it IS celiac, it seems stupid for lack of a better word, to intentionally cause more damage to my body... but I am also worried, on the other hand, that this is not a long enough challenge to make the blood work results valid.   can you give me any insight into this please?   thank you
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