Celiac Screening-anti-gliadin

[Collinsmom]

DS's blood test came back with high levels of two anti-gliadin antibodies. he tested negative for Anti-Endomysial. I've read that there is a high false positive rate with the Anti-gliadin's. we do have endoscopy scheduled in two weeks, but I'm curious if anyone knows what the odds are for a positive diagnosis for celiac. DS is 13 mos.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

There are several other threads about endoscopies in children under 6--they are very UNreliable, especially for the under-2 kiddies.

If he's only 13 months old, he can't have been consuming gluten long enough to result in villi damage anyway, unless he's been given wheat products extraordinarily early. (Most baby books say to avoid the common allergens until the age of 12 months.)

Is the doctor trying to rule out anything besides for celiac, hence the endoscopy? Or is he just looking to pad his bank account?

Bloodwork and dietary response are usually considered to be the most accurate diagnoses in little ones, and endoscopies are invasive and risky, especially to babies. Invasive procedures and anesthesia should be avoided unless there are no accurate alternatives.

Many people, I'm sure, will disagree with me, and write in to say that it was easy, their child sailed through it, etc. But some of us have had bad experiences, and you should know this. You should also know that the doctors do NOT usually inform you of the risks beforehand. And there ARE risks.

[Collinsmom]

hmm. The nurse who called back with the blood work said it was completely up to me. She said that the endiscopy was the only way to be sure, and she didn't want me to go on gluten free diet if it was unnecessary. he' only had gluten products for, 2 mos i think. we were trying to get him to eat more table foods and he would have some mac n cheese, speghetti o's etc.

I appreciate your words of caution. I think I will call the dr's office on monday and research the procedure a little more.

so in your opinion, the blood work would be pretty accurate? His Gliadin IgG score was 100.

[confused]

can you give us all of his numbers, and that way we can see if maybe he is IgA deficient. My ss only had as high IgG, but we then tested him threw enterolab and it showed he had the celiac gene and did ract to gluten. We are now in the process of having him retested, cause he still consumes gluten even tho we told him not to, that way we can do an scope, but he is 14.

What types of things has he been eating prior to the testing. Was he constipated at the time?

Just by IGG it is hard to say for sure. There is someone on the board that found out her child was just high in IGG cause of oats(i think it was oats)someone will have to say for sure.

Does celiac run in the family? Did the dr say why he wanted to test for it?

paula

[Collinsmom]

DS's blood test came back with high levels of two anti-gliadin antibodies. he tested negative for Anti-Endomysial. I've read that there is a high false positive rate with the Anti-gliadin's. we do have endoscopy scheduled in two weeks, but I'm curious if anyone knows what the odds are for a positive diagnosis for celiac. DS is 13 mos.

IgG 100.0

IgA 18.2

TTG IgA .5

endomysial IgA negative

Total Serum IgA 16

as far as I know celiac does not run in the family. My husband has a "sensative stomach" but has never been diagnosed with anything-even food allergies. I dont think he has even been tested. the dr wanted to the endoscopy to confirm the blood results. I do feed him oatmeal for breakfast.

should I keep him on gluten up until the procedure?

[confused]

yes keep him gluten and if you can give him as much as he can handle. That way there is a little bit more help of getting an positive scope. And make sure you tell them to take many biopsies, not just one or 2, cause the more the better, cause villi damage can be scattered. you might also ask for the gene test to be done on him to see if he carries the celiac gene.

Is he goos size 13 month old or his on the skinny side with a big belly.

paula

[Collinsmom]

yes keep him gluten and if you can give him as much as he can handle. That way there is a little bit more help of getting an positive scope. And make sure you tell them to take many biopsies, not just one or 2, cause the more the better, cause villi damage can be scattered. you might also ask for the gene test to be done on him to see if he carries the celiac gene.

Is he goos size 13 month old or his on the skinny side with a big belly.

paula

he has been 20.5 lbs 29.5 inchses for about 2 mos now. He has always been on the low end of the charts. He does have a big belly. In addition to the celiac testing, he also got tested for other food allergies. He has milk, soy, egg white, peanut, wheat, tomato and chicken allergies.

[vanillazeis]

i'm usually all for the endoscopy. I really am. Not in your case. I'm all for scoping a three year old, but 13 months is EXTREMELY young. I honestly believe the test will be inconclusive. There is NO way that a baby could have intestinal damage (or that they would biopsy the exact place that he does) after two months of a little macaroni and spaghetti-o's. My three year old is diagnosed with celiac, biopsy confirmed. Her GI specialist says to introduce my 9 month old to gluten at 12 months, and blood test him at 18 months. I think its safe to say you need to consume gluten for atleast 6 months to test positive as a new baby. Considering that your baby allergy tested positive to wheat remove it from his diet immediately. Reactions to allergies get worse the more times they are exposed to it. Wheat allergy can cause anaphylaxis, although it is not known to like peanuts, eggs and dairy, it can. Also the only chance you have at outgrowing an allergy is strict avoidance. I think if i were you i would just go ahead and be gluten free until he tests negative for wheat allergy. When your already avoiding so many things you might as well go ahead and avoid barley, rye and oats. It's alot easier than wheat, and things are clearly marked gluten-free. Check out enjoy life brand. they are free of the top 8 and gluten. Good luck, I hope you figure everything out. By your post I'm assuming they RAST test your kiddo for food allergies. Is that correct or did they do the skin prick testing on his back?

[Matilda]

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[Collinsmom]

Thank you guys so much for your insight. I think my hubby and I are going to have to rethink this biopsy thing. I will definately call the dr monday. When the nurse first called on thursday to ask if I wanted the biopsy, I had never heard of the procedure and was only thinking that it was important to know. Now that I have more infomation, I think we will be able to make a more educated decision.

[happygirl]

Even if he does not have "true" Celiac, he could have a non-Celiac gluten intolerance, indicated by the high IgG score. I'm assuming your child was having symptoms, which led to the testing....so even if the endo is negative, I wouldn't rule out gluten causing the symptoms, just maybe not in the Celiac mechanism.

I personally would advocate for the biopsy because it isn't looking for only Celiac....the endo will be looking for other causes of your child's symptoms. It could be something OTHER than Celiac, or something ALONG with Celiac, that you wouldn't know unless you had the endo.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

...the endo will be looking for other causes of your child's symptoms. It could be something OTHER than Celiac, or something ALONG with Celiac, that you wouldn't know unless you had the endo.

Not arguing here, just wondering WHAT else they would be looking for? I have seen so often "they might be looking for something else," but the doctors never specify what that might be.