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Confusing Test Results


Suffering in Ohio

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Suffering in Ohio Newbie
:angry: I have been suffering with abdominal pain for three years so far. I was told about a year ago that it was IBS. Nothing I took helped so I sought out a GI doctor. He has ran many tests but doesn't spend much time explaining things. I was but on Nexium for ahwile as they believed I had acid reflux. That didn't help. I started researching on my own. I believe whole heartedly that I have celiac but my blood tests came back negative. My symptoms are: extreme sensitivity to some foods causing stomach to be bloated, terrible gas, loose stools and frequent, fatigue, low iron, malnurished (result of a biopsy of intestines), achey joints, and burning sensation throughout stomach. The endoscopy revealed my intestines aren't absorbing nutrients and I have a very low iron count but my doctor doesn't seem concerned. Nothing was irregular with my colonoscopy. Any ideas? Should I totally rule out celiac?

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gfpaperdoll Rookie

It sounds like you have a positive diagnosis via endoscopy. Sometimes the docs do not bother to tell you that. but if you have malabsoption proved via endscopy that = gold standard diagnosis celiac according to the doctors at this time. I will not go into the falsehood of that theory but we all agree that if you do have a positive biobsy that you do have celiac, just that it is a shame to wait until you are so damaged to get a diagnosis.

If I were you I would get the biopsy reports in writing and if possible get another doctor to check them. But from what I am reading that you are saying sounds like you have celiac but that they did not put a name on it. Not unusual, believe me, it happens to a lot of people. When you get the records you might see an actual written diagnosis that you were not told about.

welcome to the board. It seems a lot of the regulars are out for a summer break. I am just on here escaping the summer heat under the AC :)

I also like the testing thru Enterolab.com you can look up their website. If you are interested in going that route.

Read these boards & check out some books to get the full picture.

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    • trents
      You might consider asking for a referral to a RD (Registered Dietician) to help with food choices and planning a diet. Even apart from any gluten issues, you will likely find there are some foods you need to avoid because of the shorter bowel but you may also find that your system may make adjustments over time and that symptoms may improve.
    • Ello
      I wish Dr’s would have these discussions with their patients. So frustrating but will continue to do research. Absolutely love this website. I will post any updates on my testing and results.  Thank you
    • trents
      Losing 12" of your small bowel is going to present challenges for you in nutritional uptake because you are losing a significant amount of nutritional absorption surface area. You will need to focus on consuming foods that are nutritionally dense and also probably look at some good supplements. If indeed you are having issues with gluten you will need to educate yourself as to how gluten is hidden in the food supply. There's more to it than just avoiding the major sources of gluten like bread and pasta. It is hidden in so many things you would never expect to find it in like canned tomato soup and soy sauce just to name a few. It can be in pills and medications.  Also, your "yellow diarrhea, constipation and bloating" though these are classic signs of a gluten disorder, could also be related to the post surgical shorter length of your small bowel causing incomplete processing/digestion of food.
    • Ello
      Yes this information helps. I will continue to be pro active with this issues I am having. More testing to be done. Thank you so much for your response. 
    • trents
      There are two gluten-related disorders that share many of the same symptoms but differ in nature from each other. One is known as celiac disease or "gluten intolerance". By nature, it is an autoimmune disorder, meaning the ingestion of gluten triggers the body to attack it's own tissues, specifically the lining of the small bowel. This attack causes inflammation and produces antibodies that can be detected in the blood by specific tests like the TTG-IGA test you had. Over time, if gluten is not withheld, this inflammation can cause severe damage to the lining of the small bowel and even result in nutrient deficiency related health issues since the small bowel lining is organ where all the nutrition found in our food is absorbed.  The other is NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity or just "gluten sensitivity") which we know less about and are unsure of the exact mechanism of action. It is not an autoimmune disorder and unlike celiac disease it does not damage the lining of the small bowel, though, like celiac disease, it can cause GI distress and it can also do other kinds of damage to the body. It is thought to be more common than celiac disease. Currently, we cannot test for NCGS. Celiac disease must first be ruled out to arrive at a diagnosis of NCGS. Both disorders require elimination of gluten from the diet.  Either of these disorders can find their onset at any stage of life. We know that celiac disease has a genetic component but the genes are inactive until awakened by some stress event. About 40% of the general population has the genetic potential to develop celiac disease but only about 1% develop active celiac disease. The incidence of NCGS is thought to be considerably higher. I hope this helps.
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