Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Doctor In Los Angeles

Edgar

By Edgar
in Doctors

Recommended Posts

Edgar Newbie
Edgar
Posted

I've been experiencing symptoms of Glueten intolerance for the past 5years. It began after a bout of extremely strong anti-biotics for a sinus infection. It first showed up as dizziness and brain fog, then built progressively over the past 5 years to include a range of symptoms from depression, anxiety and lack of sleep to brain fog, dizziness and severe gastro problems.

It was an allergist who first suggested wheat allergies. I followed up with not one but two GI doctors in Los Angeles and Burbank. One suggested celiacs, another refused to even consider it. Niether did testing and the one who thought I was celiacs seems to have been reitred under odd circumstances (You could say I've seen three GI guys. One of this doctors partners their practice saw me when I did a return visit and insisted the diagnosis of celiacs was a mistake).

I've been kind of floundering on my own since. I'd love a recommendation for a good GI doctor in Los Angeles who has experience with celiac disease.

I've been seeing a nutritionist for help. Aside from being a great accupuncurist, I haven't really gotten much help from her. She keeps prescribing enzymes and things designed to increase acid production. These only seem to make things worse. I know I feel better when I've been able to avoid glueten for even a few days but the symptoms are getting worse so I've resolved to get aggressive about diet and treatment with the new year. Suggestions for doctors in town are sincerely appreciated.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


uclangel422 Apprentice
uclangel422
Posted

I live in Sherman Oaks and I see Dr. Michael Hirt, he is a general internal medicine guy and he diagnosed me.

I also work in Burbank at a hospital and for G.I. guys, Dr. Kerry Weiner is supposed to be the best.

Edgar Newbie
Edgar
Posted
  • Author

I'm a little dubious about Dr. Weiner. It was a partner in his practice that refused to test me and insisted there was no such thing as a food allergy.

Edgar Newbie
Edgar
Posted
  • Author

I spoke with Dr. Pietzak at Children's Hospital. She referred me to Dr. Zipser in San Dimas. I set an appointment to see him in January. Thanks for the referrals.

nathela Rookie
nathela
Posted
I spoke with Dr. Pietzak at Children's Hospital. She referred me to Dr. Zipser in San Dimas. I set an appointment to see him in January. Thanks for the referrals.

I live in Los Feliz, in Los Angeles. I am also looking for a good celiac GI specialist in the area. So, if you like the new doctor, can you let me know? Thank you. I am going to research on naturepath.com... I heard it might be helpful. :)

uclangel422 Apprentice
uclangel422
Posted

I am so sorry that that happened to you with someone affiliated with my hospital. Thanks for telling me about that too, i will stay away from them if i ever need any GI work done.

  • 3 years later...
rpinette Newbie
rpinette
Posted
I spoke with Dr. Pietzak at Children's Hospital. She referred me to Dr. Zipser in San Dimas. I set an appointment to see him in January. Thanks for the referrals.

Edgar, where you happy with Dr. Pietzak? I too am looking for an LA based doctor. Thanks.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


nasalady Contributor
nasalady
Posted
Edgar, where you happy with Dr. Pietzak? I too am looking for an LA based doctor. Thanks.

Pietzak is exclusively a pediatric doctor, as far as I know. She wouldn't even see my little girl and had her seen by a younger GI doctor (Collins) at CHLA. We do like Dr. Collins, but even though Emma's DNA test revealed HLA DQ2, she wouldn't order a biopsy because Emma's bloodwork was negative. The celiac panel is notoriously inaccurate in young children. I put Emma on the gluten free diet and her eczema disappeared and she started to gain weight.

I saw Dr. Peter Rosenberg in Pasadena. He took me seriously and is a good listener. I think he's the best GI doctor that I've seen.

The only negative I have to report is that when my husband saw him recently (my husband has DH, which I've understood from this board to be an automatic diagnosis of celiac disease), he said that he wasn't convinced that Paul had celiac and wants him to have the celiac panel run even though he's been gluten free since JANUARY. I was surprised by this, because Rosenberg seemed to be up on the latest celiac research.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to wellthatsfun's topic in Gluten-Free Recipes & Cooking Tips
      1

      heaps of hope!

      Your post nails the practical reality of living well with a celiac diagnosis. The shift from feeling restricted to discovering a new world of cooking—whether through a supportive partner making gluten-free spanakopita and gravy, or learning to cook for yourself—is exactly how many people find their footing. It turns a medical necessity into a chance to bui...
    2. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to Jordan Carlson's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      2

      Fruits & Veggies

      You are experiencing a remarkable recovery by addressing core nutrient deficiencies, yet you've uncovered a deeper, lifelong intolerance to fruits and vegetables that appears to be a distinct issue from celiac disease. Your experience points strongly toward a separate condition, likely Oral Allergy Syndrome (OAS) or a non-IgE food intolerance, such as salicylate...
    3. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to yellowstone's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      1

      Cold/flu or gluten poisoning?

      Your satiation is challenging and a common dilemma for those with celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity: distinguishing between a routine viral illness and a reaction to gluten exposure. The overlap in symptoms—fatigue, malaise, body aches, and general inflammation—makes it nearly impossible to tell them apart in the moment, especially with a h...
    4. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to hjayne19's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      1

      Celiac Screening

      Your situation highlights a difficult but critical crossroads in celiac diagnosis. While your positive blood test (a high TTG-IgA of 66.6) and dramatic improvement on a gluten-free diet strongly point to celiac disease, the gastroenterologist is following the formal protocol which requires an endoscopy/biopsy for official confirmation. This confirmation is...
    5. Scott Adams
      - Scott Adams replied to Jmartes71's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      2

      New issue

      Your experience of being medically dismissed for decades, despite a clear celiac diagnosis since 1994, is unacceptable. It is a tragic common thread in our community that the systemic failure to understand celiac disease leads to a cascade of other diagnoses—like SIBO, IBS, depression, and now the investigation of MS or meningioma—while the core autoimmune con...
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      133,090
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    LVanderbeck12
    Newest Member
    LVanderbeck12
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Scott Adams
      heaps of hope!

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Your post nails the practical reality of living well with a celiac diagnosis. The shift from feeling restricted to discovering a new world of cooking—whether through a supportive partner making gluten-free spanakopita and gravy, or learning to cook for yourself—is exactly how many people find their footing. It turns a medical necessity into a chance to build kitchen skills, eat more whole foods, and actually enjoy the process. Your point that the basics—knife skills, food safety, and experimenting with spices—are all you really need is solid, helpful advice. It’s a good reminder that the diagnosis, while a pain, doesn’t have to stop you from eating well or having fun with food.
    • Scott Adams
      Fruits & Veggies

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      You are experiencing a remarkable recovery by addressing core nutrient deficiencies, yet you've uncovered a deeper, lifelong intolerance to fruits and vegetables that appears to be a distinct issue from celiac disease. Your experience points strongly toward a separate condition, likely Oral Allergy Syndrome (OAS) or a non-IgE food intolerance, such as salicylate or histamine intolerance. The instant burning, heart palpitations, and anxiety you describe are classic systemic reactions to food chemicals, not typical celiac reactions. It makes perfect sense that your body rejected these foods from birth; the gagging was likely a neurological reflex to a perceived toxin. Now that your gut has healed, you're feeling the inflammatory response internally instead. The path forward involves targeted elimination: try cooking fruits and vegetables (which often breaks down the problematic proteins/chemicals), focus on low-histamine and low-salicylate options (e.g., peeled pears, zucchini), and consider working with an allergist or dietitian specializing in food chemical intolerances. 
    • Scott Adams
      Cold/flu or gluten poisoning?

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Your satiation is challenging and a common dilemma for those with celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity: distinguishing between a routine viral illness and a reaction to gluten exposure. The overlap in symptoms—fatigue, malaise, body aches, and general inflammation—makes it nearly impossible to tell them apart in the moment, especially with a hypersensitive system. This ambiguity is a significant source of anxiety. The key differentiator often lies in the symptom pattern and accompanying signs: gluten reactions frequently include distinct digestive upset (bloating, diarrhea), neurological symptoms like "brain fog," or a specific rash (dermatitis herpetiformis), and they persist without the respiratory symptoms (runny nose, sore throat) typical of a cold. Tracking your symptoms meticulously after any exposure and during illnesses can help identify your personal patterns. Ultimately, your experience underscores the reality that for a sensitive body, any immune stressor—be it gluten or a virus—can trigger a severe and similar inflammatory cascade, making vigilant management of your diet all the more critical. Have you had a blood panel done for celiac disease? This article might be helpful. It breaks down each type of test, and what a positive results means in terms of the probability that you might have celiac disease. One test that always needs to be done is the IgA Levels/Deficiency Test (often called "Total IGA") because some people are naturally IGA deficient, and if this is the case, then certain blood tests for celiac disease might be false-negative, and other types of tests need to be done to make an accurate diagnosis. The article includes the "Mayo Clinic Protocol," which is the best overall protocol for results to be ~98% accurate.    
    • Scott Adams
      Celiac Screening

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Your situation highlights a difficult but critical crossroads in celiac diagnosis. While your positive blood test (a high TTG-IgA of 66.6) and dramatic improvement on a gluten-free diet strongly point to celiac disease, the gastroenterologist is following the formal protocol which requires an endoscopy/biopsy for official confirmation. This confirmation is important for your lifelong medical record, can rule out other issues, and is often needed for family screening eligibility. The conflicting advice from your doctors creates understandable anxiety. The challenge, of course, is the "gluten challenge"—reintroducing gluten for 4-6 weeks to make the biopsy accurate. Since your symptoms resolved, this will likely make you feel unwell again. You must weigh the short-term hardship against the long-term certainty of a concrete diagnosis. A key discussion to have with your GI doctor is whether, given your clear serology and clinical response, would be getting a diagnosis without the biopsy.
    • Scott Adams
      New issue

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Your experience of being medically dismissed for decades, despite a clear celiac diagnosis since 1994, is unacceptable. It is a tragic common thread in our community that the systemic failure to understand celiac disease leads to a cascade of other diagnoses—like SIBO, IBS, depression, and now the investigation of MS or meningioma—while the core autoimmune condition is neglected. The constant, severe flu-like symptoms and new neurological concerns are absolutely valid and warrant serious investigation for connections to celiac-related autoimmunity or complications like refractory disease. It is enraging that you must fight so hard to be heard. While I don't have a medical answer about MS or meningioma links, your instinct is correct: relentless symptoms require a specialist who understands celiac disease beyond the gut. Regarding the California proclamation, it is a symbolic advocacy effort; reaching out to the women mentioned may provide supportive community, but your advocacy with your local representative is the most direct action. 
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.