gluten-free For Only Three Weeks. Will Biopsy Still Show Accurate Results?

[Jhoward521]

I have had severe abdominal pain for a couple months. So I tried gluten-free one day and two days later felt a change. I had blood work done about 10 days in and it showed positive for gluten intolerance. So the GI is now doing colonoscopy and endoscopy. I will be one day shy of 3 weeks gluten-free, with day 3 I have non gluten-free crackers. Other than that, gluten-free to the best of my knowledge. Can I still test positive for Celiacs if indeed I do have it? I have never eaten gluten-free in my life prior to these 3 weeks. I am imagining I still have plenty of gluten or damage to be seen in my system if that's the case.

I would love to hear back from people on this!!

P.S. I also rotate between constipation and loose bowels, I have the chicken skin arms they call it, borderline anemic, infertility issues.

[kareng]

If it were me, I would want to be sure I get an accurate biopsy result and start eating a little gluten everyday. The superficial damage can heal quickly. Sure, you might have enough damage to get an accurate result. Make sure he plans to take at least 6 biopsies to increase the chances that he finds some damage. The intestines are around 20 feet long and a biopsy is tiny.

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[Jhoward521]

If it were me, I would want to be sure I get an accurate biopsy result and start eating a little gluten everyday. The superficial damage can heal quickly. Sure, you might have enough damage to get an accurate result. Make sure he plans to take at least 6 biopsies to increase the chances that he finds some damage. The intestines are around 20 feet long and a biopsy is tiny.

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I can't eat today. I have test tomorrow.

[NoGlutenCooties]

While it is recommended to continue to be consuming gluten when you get tested, the inflammation is spotty and can come-and-go so even while you're eating gluten you can potentially get a false negative result.  However, I think a false negative is less likely if you're eating gluten.  In my case, my blood test came back positive and I stopped eating gluten right away.  My biopsy was 3 weeks later and it showed visible inflammation and the biopsy came back with moderate to severe villi damage.  But everyone is different and I think it really depends on the timing and getting lucky enough to catch it during a flare up.  But in general, the antibodies do not go away immediately and it is the antibodies that are causing the damage.  It can take months or even a year or two for all of the antibodies to die off.  On the other hand, many people see a very noticeable improvement in symptoms just a week or two into a gluten free diet, which would suggest that the inflammation in the intestine is likely already starting to improve - which would effect the outcome of the tests.

 

I hope I didn't confuse you even further... the short answer is that it depends.  Hopefully now you have an idea of what it can depend on...