Celiac Doctor Near San Jose, California?

[ConfusedNeuropathic]

Hi all,

SHORT VERSION:

I live in San Jose and am currently looking for a doctor to screen me for celiac disease. Can any of you folks recommend one that you've had a good experience with? I see a few listed in the doctor directory on this site but am unsure of what kinds of positive/negative experiences people have actually had with them. Please feel free to PM me or post here, I will drive anywhere in the Bay Area as needed.

LOOOOONG VERSION:

The extended version of my request is as follows. I'm a 30 year old male who has had all kinds of strange symptoms over the last few months. It started with some chest pains and tender calves in both legs, at that time a EKG did not turn up any abnormalities. Then I started seeing streaks of blood in my spit, and had a CT scan which detected sinusitis and a badly deviated septum. My doctor said the bloody spit was from postnasal drip irritating my throat. I took antibiotics (Avelox, Augmentin, and Biaxin XL) for a month, and the bloody spit stopped, but the sinusitis only partially cleared up.

After that, I started having painful bowel movements and bloody stools. I had an anoscopy which found an anal fissure and hemerrhoids, and the doctor told me I was constipated (first time for this for me) and suggested I take docusate sodium stool softeners. That seemed to help the bloody stools some, and the painful bowel movements have subsided.

Following that, I started feeling dizzy all the time and developed strange sensations in my feet/legs and hands/arms. The sensations alternate between burning/tingling and itching (without rash). My doctor tested me for vitamin D and vitamin B12 levels, and I was deficient in D and in the low range for B12, so I've been taking oral supplements of both for a while, to no noticeable effect. The neuropathic burning feelings have slowly become more frequent and widespread over the last month. I also saw a neurologist and had a brain and cervical spine MRI, neither of which revealed anything unusual (outside of some neck vertebrae degeneration which is more than expected for my age) that could explain the symptoms. I was tested for heavy metal toxicology and that came up with nothing.

CLIFF'S NOTES:

Today I'm still having the neuropathy (very bothersome) and have noticed some weight loss (I weighed about 140 pounds before everything started and lost about 8 pounds in the last few weeks). Bowel movements alternate between constipation and diarrhea, there isn't much middle ground. My doctor thinks I'm nuts and is chalking it all up to anxiety. He won't consider the possibility that it could be something else at all.

I only recall the neuropathy starting after the month-long course of antibiotics and can't help but wonder if there's a GI tie in -- perhaps the antibiotics did something to my GI tract that led to malabsorption of nutrients and also vitamin supplements? Anyway I'm clutching at straws here and want to at least explore the possibility of the root problem being gluten intolerance. So any help in recommending a doctor who will at least screen me without thinking I'm insane would be much appreciated!

[jacqui]

I saw Gary Gray at the Stanford Celiac management clinic. He does all lab work including gene testing day one/first appointment. The clinic was only on Mondays in AM I think. At least he diagnosed and then I went to local docs. I was pleased with him but others weren't. I needed diagnosis because up in Sacramento doctors were and are still oblivious!

SHORT VERSION:

I live in San Jose and am currently looking for a doctor to screen me for celiac disease. Can any of you folks recommend one that you've had a good experience with? I see a few listed in the doctor directory on this site but am unsure of what kinds of positive/negative experiences people have actually had with them. Please feel free to PM me or post here, I will drive anywhere in the Bay Area as needed.

LOOOOONG VERSION:

The extended version of my request is as follows. I'm a 30 year old male who has had all kinds of strange symptoms over the last few months. It started with some chest pains and tender calves in both legs, at that time a EKG did not turn up any abnormalities. Then I started seeing streaks of blood in my spit, and had a CT scan which detected sinusitis and a badly deviated septum. My doctor said the bloody spit was from postnasal drip irritating my throat. I took antibiotics (Avelox, Augmentin, and Biaxin XL) for a month, and the bloody spit stopped, but the sinusitis only partially cleared up.

After that, I started having painful bowel movements and bloody stools. I had an anoscopy which found an anal fissure and hemerrhoids, and the doctor told me I was constipated (first time for this for me) and suggested I take docusate sodium stool softeners. That seemed to help the bloody stools some, and the painful bowel movements have subsided.

Following that, I started feeling dizzy all the time and developed strange sensations in my feet/legs and hands/arms. The sensations alternate between burning/tingling and itching (without rash). My doctor tested me for vitamin D and vitamin B12 levels, and I was deficient in D and in the low range for B12, so I've been taking oral supplements of both for a while, to no noticeable effect. The neuropathic burning feelings have slowly become more frequent and widespread over the last month. I also saw a neurologist and had a brain and cervical spine MRI, neither of which revealed anything unusual (outside of some neck vertebrae degeneration which is more than expected for my age) that could explain the symptoms. I was tested for heavy metal toxicology and that came up with nothing.

CLIFF'S NOTES:

Today I'm still having the neuropathy (very bothersome) and have noticed some weight loss (I weighed about 140 pounds before everything started and lost about 8 pounds in the last few weeks). Bowel movements alternate between constipation and diarrhea, there isn't much middle ground. My doctor thinks I'm nuts and is chalking it all up to anxiety. He won't consider the possibility that it could be something else at all.

I only recall the neuropathy starting after the month-long course of antibiotics and can't help but wonder if there's a GI tie in -- perhaps the antibiotics did something to my GI tract that led to malabsorption of nutrients and also vitamin supplements? Anyway I'm clutching at straws here and want to at least explore the possibility of the root problem being gluten intolerance. So any help in recommending a doctor who will at least screen me without thinking I'm insane would be much appreciated!

[NerdGirl]

I was wondering if you were able to find a doctor. I don't have a specific recommendation, but I wanted to let you know that I went through a lot of the same stuff that you did. I was desperate and went on the gluten free diet before being tested, with amazing results.

I wish that I would have been officially diagnosed, but there is no way that I will go back on gluten now. It is like night and day for me. Don't lose hope.

[Angela S]

You should try Health Now Medical Clinic in Sunnyvale. They have an informative website and your initial consultation is free. I don't have celiac but they diagnosed a gluten sensitivity as well as a stomach parasite.

Hi all,

SHORT VERSION:

I live in San Jose and am currently looking for a doctor to screen me for celiac disease. Can any of you folks recommend one that you've had a good experience with? I see a few listed in the doctor directory on this site but am unsure of what kinds of positive/negative experiences people have actually had with them. Please feel free to PM me or post here, I will drive anywhere in the Bay Area as needed.

LOOOOONG VERSION:

The extended version of my request is as follows. I'm a 30 year old male who has had all kinds of strange symptoms over the last few months. It started with some chest pains and tender calves in both legs, at that time a EKG did not turn up any abnormalities. Then I started seeing streaks of blood in my spit, and had a CT scan which detected sinusitis and a badly deviated septum. My doctor said the bloody spit was from postnasal drip irritating my throat. I took antibiotics (Avelox, Augmentin, and Biaxin XL) for a month, and the bloody spit stopped, but the sinusitis only partially cleared up.

After that, I started having painful bowel movements and bloody stools. I had an anoscopy which found an anal fissure and hemerrhoids, and the doctor told me I was constipated (first time for this for me) and suggested I take docusate sodium stool softeners. That seemed to help the bloody stools some, and the painful bowel movements have subsided.

Following that, I started feeling dizzy all the time and developed strange sensations in my feet/legs and hands/arms. The sensations alternate between burning/tingling and itching (without rash). My doctor tested me for vitamin D and vitamin B12 levels, and I was deficient in D and in the low range for B12, so I've been taking oral supplements of both for a while, to no noticeable effect. The neuropathic burning feelings have slowly become more frequent and widespread over the last month. I also saw a neurologist and had a brain and cervical spine MRI, neither of which revealed anything unusual (outside of some neck vertebrae degeneration which is more than expected for my age) that could explain the symptoms. I was tested for heavy metal toxicology and that came up with nothing.

CLIFF'S NOTES:

Today I'm still having the neuropathy (very bothersome) and have noticed some weight loss (I weighed about 140 pounds before everything started and lost about 8 pounds in the last few weeks). Bowel movements alternate between constipation and diarrhea, there isn't much middle ground. My doctor thinks I'm nuts and is chalking it all up to anxiety. He won't consider the possibility that it could be something else at all.

I only recall the neuropathy starting after the month-long course of antibiotics and can't help but wonder if there's a GI tie in -- perhaps the antibiotics did something to my GI tract that led to malabsorption of nutrients and also vitamin supplements? Anyway I'm clutching at straws here and want to at least explore the possibility of the root problem being gluten intolerance. So any help in recommending a doctor who will at least screen me without thinking I'm insane would be much appreciated!