First Experience With An "unaware" Doctor

[zarfkitty]

Is this a common reaction from doctors? I drove my granny to a doctor appointment today (which was about a wrist injury). He was a family doctor.

She mentioned to him that I had celiac and he said it was almost impossible that granny has it because he's never diagnosed a celiac in their 30's let alone in their 60's. He said it was a child-teenager range diagnosis. He said he'd screen her to put her mind at ease but not to worry about celiac at her age. He's of a "certain age" so it's possible he's never been exposed to recent research?

I could have screamed at him. Instead I pointed out that lots of people are being diagnosed at later stages of life and he (as politely as possible) invited me to provide proof of that. Geez!! Maybe I should start carrying around the ever increasing notebook of "good" studies and anecdotal evidence I've been printing out?

He told her to try the gluten-free diet if she wanted to and that he would support her if she found it helpful. So there's at least that. She's waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay symptomatic, by the way.

I am taking my enterolab results and my personal positive reaction to gluten-free to my family doctor on monday. I'm also taking the "notebook" just in case. I don't feel like I need her permission but I do want her support for the future. gluten-free drugs, etc. I hope to heaven that she doesn't blow me off....

Thanks for reading. I had to vent.

[Guhlia]

You'll find that most doctor's know very little about Celiac. At least he was open to listening, that's more than we can say about many doctors. Be forwarned that he will likely dismiss your Enterolab results because they aren't mainstream medicine. Don't let that discourage you. It sounds like you're taking great care of your grandmother and she's lucky to have you.

[psawyer]

I was 46 when I received my diagnosis. I had to ask my doctor to test for it, after my wife found some information. He said it was a rare disease, usually seen in childhood, but made the referral. Bingo.

I've moved this discussion to the "doctors" area.

[Karen B.]

My Mom is 74 and she was diagnosed a couple of years ago. Her doc didn't want to run the tests because he said she didn't have symptoms (she was having muscle cramps). He was surprised when it came back negative. He is a modern doc in his 40s in a modern medical facility in a major city and he's about as informed as most doctors are on Celiac.

Sadly, if there is no pharmaceutical salesman coming through every week to remind American docs that a condition exists, it seems to get pushed back to the dusty back corners of their minds.