2 Months Gf And Going For A Biopsy

[Guest dlf1021]

I've been on the diet since late January and will be going for a biopsy next Friday (April 2). My GI told me that two months won't have any effect on the villi and if I do in fact have Celiac, there will still be evidence of it in my intestines. He made no mention of resuming a gluten diet until after the test is performed, but I'm still wondering it it would be a good idea? I just want to make sure that there's enough evidence if it is in fact Celiac.

Any advice?

[gf4life]

I think your doctor has it backwards, so don't be surprised if your biopsy is negative. You should have been on gluten for the past two months preparing for the biopsy. Even a few days of gluten free can mess up a biopsy. Certainly your intestines could have healed a significant amount in the last two months. Our bodies are amazingly good at reparing damage quickly. The biopsy may not show enough damage to be used to diagnose Celiac.

God bless,

Mariann

[Guest dlf1021]

mariann,

that's what i was afraid of. he assured me that nothing would have healed "that quickly" but considering his attitude toward me and his general lack of knowledge of the disease, it wouldn't surprise me if he messed up. this whole thing is turning into drama...i feel like i'm living in some soap opera

[warpspeed]

Wow! I'm going through the exact same thing. I've been gluten-free for 2 months and am having a biopsy next Tuesday. I mentioned that it will probably be negative because of the diet and the GI doc wasn't concerned at all. He says he thinks it'll show other food intolerances. I haven't heard that before, have you? Because the gluten-free diet didn't help, he thinks I may be intolerant of many foods. I have avoided alcohol, dairy and soy also. My blood test was positive for celiac. What do you think?

warpspeed

[Dwight Senne]

My thinking is it would depend on your symptoms. If you showed signs of malabsorbtion (greasy, floating stools, lowered cholesterol, etc) prior to going gluten-free, this would indicate that there could have been significant villous atrophy. I doubt that would all be healed up in two months! However, if there were no signs of malabsorbtion, the endoscopic biopsy becomes more of an iffy proposal.

Your doctor may also be basing this on how long you have been symptomatic. If you have had symptoms of Celiac for many years, he may be assuming there is sufficient villous atrophy to still be present.

My only other concern would be that you may not show the doudenitis that is often associated with active Celiac. It may be there, I'm not sure - I'm not a doc. My guess is, that it would not, however.

[Guest dlf1021]

dewiehughie,

looking back, i guess i've had symptoms for almost 10 years. i'm really hoping that they can get an accurate read. even if the test comes back negative, there's always going to be that 'what if' factor there.

my doc didn't seem convinced that i had any symptoms of celiac at all. i don't know where he got his information from because as far as i know, i have all but DH and anemia. he also told me that celiac patients don't suffer from abdominal pain. ha.

warpspeed-

good luck with your biopsy. i hope everything turns out alright and you find the answers you are looking for!

[wildones]

Why are either of you doing biopsies with doctors who don't know what they are talking about ???? If you have a positive blood test, why are you even doing a biopsy ?? A biopsy does not need to be done, as far as I know, if you already have confirmation through a blood test. I personally would not trust a doctor who does not realize that 2 months gluten free is enough to see an improvement in the damage (if any) to your villi. If I were you, I would at least ask the GI doctors you are seeing, exactly why they are doing what they are doing and how much experience they have in diagnosing and treating celiac disease.

I have a tremendous amount of respect for many doctors my kids and I have seen over the years. The ones who deserve respect are the ones who will readily admit when they really don't have an answer, but are willing either to refer you on or do some reasearch for you. I do not respect the doctors, at all, who will refuse to take a patient's complaints seriously and are dismissive of things, out of ignorance. Doctors are just like everyone else, some are very good and some are not. Doctors, just like every other professional have to earn our respect in order to retain us as patients.

[danesmom]

I'm new at this (celiac disease and message boards). my 12 month old son is having his biopsy done monday. We just found out about celiac disease yesterday. The dr insisted I give him Gluten. I cry every time I feed him knowing I'm harming him. Immediately it comes right back out. I fought with the drs not to give him gluten, besides its only three days. But they insisted he MUST stay on a gluten diet to get accurate results.

I hope things work out for you.

[gf4life]

Hi Danesmom,

Welcome to the board. I am sorry to hear about your son being sick, but be thankful that your doctors seems to know what they are doing. You will be able to help your son get healthy and stay healthy! I know it is hard to keep giving him gluten knowing that it is making him sick, but it is only until Monday. Many of us have to wait months for a biopsy.

I will be keeping all of you in my prayers. I hope your biopsies show whatever they need to to be accurately diagnosed.

God bless,

Mariann

[Guest gillian502]

I hope all who have this problem get a chance to talk with their doctor, wait on having those biopsies, and go back on gluten for a while until you can then have the biopsy you need and get a proper result. It's so sad how little doctors know about our disease. Mine told me to go on and off the diet and just deal with the diarrhea, no big deal, and he said this wasn't a diet I had to remain on for life. Sometimes I am stunned by the ignorance of others. Thanks God I knew more than my doctor on this subject, can you imagine if I didn't? I would've gone back to gluten and then maybe developed a secondary autoimmune disease or lymphoma that could've killed me. I just will never understand why it is that if these people don't know the answer to something, they don't go research it and find out, rather than giving advice that could risk our lives. If I had gotten this disease before the advent of the internet I wouldn't know nearly as much and I shudder to think where I might be! If you think you can stand the gluten, please go back to it and wait for the biopsy...and yes, DO have the biopsy...the medical community will never consider you a Celiac until you do.