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Celiac Testing

Sam81

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Sam81 Apprentice
Sam81
Posted

I was just wondering if any one knows if a colonoscopy can confirm/disprove celiac DH (dermatitis herpetiformis)??

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psawyer Proficient
psawyer
Posted

Yes, I do, and no, it cannot. The intestinal damage caused by celiac disease is in the small intestine, not the colon.

kareng Grand Master
kareng
Posted

No. DH is a skin problem. A Dermatologist biopsies next to the "pimple" & it is sent to the pathologist for a microscopic look.

An endoscopy is used to diagnosis the small intestine damage from Celiac. Multiple Biopsies are taken of the small intestine & looked at microscopically. A colonoscopy is the large intestine so your confused doctor is looking in the wrong places.

Sam81 Apprentice
Sam81
Posted
  • Author

Ok, thank you. Mr Dr is convinced I do not have celiac - despite ticking all boxes bar 1. I'm in the UK and have heard of a test you can by over the counter - "Biocard Celiac Test - Gluten Sensitivity test kit". Has anyone bought and tried this? Does it work and does it hold any weight with Dr's??

It really isn't that I want to have Celiac but it's the age old NEED to have an answer to all my discomfort and a piece of paper to hand to people to say - "Look - I'm not imagining it!"

I'm 30 on Monday and feel more like 70. Ridiculous.

pgrovetom Rookie
pgrovetom
Posted

I was just wondering if any one knows if a colonoscopy can confirm/disprove celiac DH (dermatitis herpetiformis)??

Yes a Colonoscopy can confirm Celiac if the doctor doing it does a biopsy of the intestines after reaching the end of the colon. When I had my Colonoscopy, the GI doc did a Celiac biopsy since he was already in there and could get the biopsy from my lower intestines... If the GI doc only examines the colon as per a normal colonoscopy, no it does no good. Since an endoscopy is easier than a colonoscopy, they usually do the biopsy from the topside. I had both.

In any case, biopsies are better at confirming than ruling out Celiac. The doctor takes a sample of the intestinal lining for later examination under a microscope. If they see the damage from Celiac, its a sure thing. If they don't, it either means you don't have Celiac or they took the biopsy from a healthy area or the Gluten had yet to damage the intestinal lining. In general, ruling things out is a risky game. If something like Celiac is "ruled out" and in error, it will be a long time before they eventually run into something that suggests "un-ruling it out".

This is a very common problem in medicine and is due to cost control. When studies are done in medicine, they actually follow a proper scientific and statistically proper approach by using careful controls, large populations and double blind technique in order not to come to a conclusion in error. Regular medicine abandons this very appropriate method in favor of saving money at the expense of proper diagnosis.

If you are planning to have a colonoscopy, ask your GI doc if they can take a Celiac biopsy from the lower intestine just above the colon. If you already had it and they didn't do that biopsy, it means nothing with regard to Celiac.

psawyer Proficient
psawyer
Posted

It would be better to do an endoscopy of the duodenum (upper part of the small intestine) at the same time as the colonoscopy. There is no extra prep required. I had that done when I was diagnosed. The colonoscopy will not detect celiac, but should be done to screen for other conditions which may exist.

ravenwoodglass Mentor
ravenwoodglass
Posted

Yes a Colonoscopy can confirm Celiac if the doctor doing it does a biopsy of the intestines after reaching the end of the colon. When I had my Colonoscopy, the GI doc did a Celiac biopsy since he was already in there and could get the biopsy from my lower intestines... If the GI doc only examines the colon as per a normal colonoscopy, no it does no good. Since an endoscopy is easier than a colonoscopy, they usually do the biopsy from the topside. I had both.

In any case, biopsies are better at confirming than ruling out Celiac. The doctor takes a sample of the intestinal lining for later examination under a microscope. If they see the damage from Celiac, its a sure thing. If they don't, it either means you don't have Celiac or they took the biopsy from a healthy area or the Gluten had yet to damage the intestinal lining. In general, ruling things out is a risky game. If something like Celiac is "ruled out" and in error, it will be a long time before they eventually run into something that suggests "un-ruling it out".

This is a very common problem in medicine and is due to cost control. When studies are done in medicine, they actually follow a proper scientific and statistically proper approach by using careful controls, large populations and double blind technique in order not to come to a conclusion in error. Regular medicine abandons this very appropriate method in favor of saving money at the expense of proper diagnosis.

If you are planning to have a colonoscopy, ask your GI doc if they can take a Celiac biopsy from the lower intestine just above the colon. If you already had it and they didn't do that biopsy, it means nothing with regard to Celiac.

I have never heard of a doctor doing a biopsy of the small intestine with a colonoscopy. Since you say you had both scopes done at the same time I suspect the biopsies were taken during the endo not the colonoscopy.

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