Can a colonoscopy diagnose Celiac disease?
I started eating a gluten free diet about a week ago and I will be having a colonoscopy in a few weeks. I have not been diagnosed with a gluten intolerance but I think that is what I have. Should I start eating gluten the week before the colonoscopy? Also, I have read that an endoscopy can diagnose celiac disease. Can a colonoscopy also diagnose it?
Colonoscopy, by Joseph A. Murray, MD. of the Mayo Clinic Rochester, MN, a Gastroenterologist who Specializes in the Treatment of Celiac Disease:
”The biopsy determination of celiac disease requires demonstration of the abnormalities in the proximal small intestine. It is not possible to get such a biopsy going through the anus. The colonoscope does not reach that far. The biopsy instrument must go through the mouth. This is usually achieved with a upper endoscopy (AKA gastroscopy, EGD) A colonoscopy is frequently preformed for the investigation of diarrhea but does not and can not detect celiac disease. ”
the only way to test for Celiac disease is through a blood test!…make an appointment with your general doctor and tell him/ her your symptoms you feel after eating gluten enriched foods…then get a blood panel done to see if you have it or not…just remember to eat a lot of gluten enriched foods before the test!…it’s the ONLY way to see if you have or not!…good luck and god speed!
Lab work is the best way , my wife had it 3 weeks ago and it is expensive , over 4 grand , so make sure your insurance will cover it. Do you a web search and you will find all kinds of information, tips, recipes , etc. She is now on a gluten free, and dairy free diet and takes weekly B12 shots.
PS…that diet is killing me , I have to go out and eat my bread and drink my milk, lol
All tests for celiac disease have little chance of a correct result if you’re on a gluten free diet. If you’re having the tests, stop being gluten free until afterwards. One week before is not long enough. Keep on eating what everybody else eats for the whole period between now and the tests, or you will most likely end up with conflicting results which will confuse both you and your doctor.
1. damage due to celiac disease can not be found in the colon. Celiac is an autoimmune disease that attacks the small intestine, your doc won’t be going there, so no, a colonoscopy can not diagnose you as a celiac. It can look for colitis and Crohns though.
2. To get a proper gluten challenge in order to get a reliable celiac screening blood work (as long as you are not IGA deficient) result and a probably reliable endoscopy is to have yourself good and glutened BEFORE the test. The usual recommendation is one slice of bread per day x 3 MONTHS.
You glutening yourself a week before the testing isn’t really going to do much as far as diagnostics if you have been gluten free for any amount of time, honestly.
The blood work measures gluten antibodies which means you need to be eating it long enough to have built some up, and the biopsy looks for the damage to the villi caused by the autoimmune system. If it isn’t stimulated by eating adequate gluten, then there will not be adequate damage for them to see. From what I understand the damage occurs from the further along areas in the small intestine and then moves up the gut towards the stomach. That is why there is a need for such long term glutening to have a most likely accurate endoscopy result.
If you have not been gluten free then that isn’t a problem and you should be fine for the testing.
Also, do NOT accept the diagnosis of "IBS" without getting tested for celiac, should your doctor try that, ask for the blood work and if it is refused, get yourself another GI!!!
I read a story last month a little girl used a microscope to diagnose herself to find out exactly what she was sick after a dozen years of mal-treatment from her doctors.
You are better use a microscope to check out yourself too for any disease too.