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Question About First Visit With Doctor

Menqet

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Menqet Newbie
Menqet
Posted

Hi everyone!

I am going to my doctor on Monday to see if I can get tested for celiac (and to have my hearing tested, too). I've been gluten-free for several days, and I feel great now! My husband thinks I'm nuts. My question right now is, should I start eating gluten again before my doctor's appointment? I'm not sure when/if he'll test me. The thought of going back to gluten freaks me out. I'm 36, married and have two amazing daughters. I see some symptoms in my youngest, which has prompted me to find answers.

Here's some of my history:

-symptoms from the past 4-5 years includes: psoriasis on both my index fingers, occasional diarrhea and stomach pain/cramping (not at all consistent, though), horrible memory, lack of concentration, depression, extreme fatigue, hair loss, migraines, weight gain (because I feel like I need to be eating constantly!) - all which is starting to go away with eating gluten-free

-some family history includes: brother that was diagnosed with schizophrenia (so horrible, it was the worst), aunt that was diagnosed with osteoporosis in her early 50's, diabetes. As for myself, I always had anemia (grandma used to dose me up pretty good with her Geritol!), discolored adult teeth, horrible growing pains.

I just don't know when to go back on gluten for testing. Should I wait to talk to him first?

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Lisa Mentor
Lisa
Posted

Hi and welcome!!!

If you have been gluten free for "several days", it should not mess up your result as long as it's done in a timely manner. Yes, the optimum for testing would be a full diet of gluten.

I would request a full Celiac Panel ( I will include that at the end of this post). As well, request a full Metabolic Panel, to check on any deficiencies you may have.

Some PCP do not have the knowledge to interpret the result of the tests they order, so please request the result, so you have it.

*

Serologic Tests

1. EMA (Immunoglobulin A anti-endomysium antibodies)

2. AGA (IgA anti-gliadin antibodies) Some people do not produce IgA antibodies.

3. DGP (Deamidated gliadin peptide antibody)

4. tTGA (IgA anti-tissue transglutaminase)

Menqet Newbie
Menqet
Posted
  • Author

Thanks so much! I will definitely take that list with me to the visit.

I only started researching celiac this past week, so all of this is very new to me. If that's really what I have, then it certainly explains so much about my life. We'll just have to see what the test results say. Right now, everyone just thinks I'm crazy, and that I was just too bored being snowed in my house for a couple weeks. I really think that things came to a head during the snow storms, because everything we had to eat in the house had so much gluten in it. I felt so horrible! I normally naturally eat gluten free, anyway, so that hasn't been too much of a change for me. A cousin of my husband went through celiac testing, and she helped convince me to get tested.

Again, thanks for the list. I'm very excited that I found this forum!

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      By SamAlvi · Posted

      Hi, thank you for the reply. Unfortunately, no other antibody tests were ordered. I am a 32-year-old male. About two months ago, I ate pancakes and then developed severe diarrhea that lasted the entire day. At night, I became unconscious due to fluid loss and was admitted to the ER, where I received IV fluids. Two days later, I ate bread again and once more developed severe diarrhea. I ended up in the ER again and received IV fluids. In my country, Pakistan, doctors are unfortunately not very thorough, so they treated me for a stomach infection. I visited three or four doctors, including a gastroenterologist, but it seemed like they just wanted to keep me on medications and IV fluids. Eventually, I did some digging myself and started connecting the dots. For years, I’ve had excessive gas buildup and frequent loose stools, but I never paid much attention to it. I also cannot easily digest dairy products. Two years ago, I had a CBC test that showed iron deficiency. My doctor told me to eat more meat and said it was nothing serious. However, for the past five years, I’ve also had severe motion sickness, which I never experienced before. Whenever I get on a bus or in a car, I sometimes lose consciousness for 10–20 seconds and wake up sweaty, and occasionally I feel the need to vomit. After more research on the internet, I came across gluten and celiac disease, so I got two related tests (TTG-IgA & TTG IgG) done along with a stool test and another CBC. The stool test showed weakly positive blood. Ever since eating those pancakes and bread, I’ve had a burning sensation in my gut. My doctor reviewed my tests, he told me to completely stop eating gluten and started me on IV fluids for 20 days, saying that I had severe inflammation in my gut. It has now been two months since I quit gluten, and I’m still not sure whether this is celiac disease or gluten intolerance. I don’t really trust doctors in Pakistan, so I thought I might get some help here.
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