The Great Plains Laboratory, Inc. recommends the Celiac Disease Test for people affected by celiac disease.

What is the Celiac Disease Test?

In the medical disorder called celiac disease, there is a reduced ability to digest wheat and there is often a direct toxic effect of gluten on the lining of the intestine called the intestinal mucosa. Symptoms may include diarrhea, failure to thrive, short stature, discolored dental enamel, depression, premature degeneration of the nervous system, seizures, arthritis, nutritional deficiencies due to malabsorption, and abdominal distension

Long eyelashes, premature balding, and clubbing of the fingers are also commonly reported in this disease. In celiac disease, there is also an increase in the blood of antibodies to wheat. There is also a marked increase in antibodies called endomysial antibodies. The exact nature of the endomysial antigen has recently been identified as the tissue transglutaminase enzyme.

Researchers in Norway think that transglutaminase facilitates the physical linkage of the carboxamide group of an amino acid called glutamine in gluten to an epsilon-amino group of a lysine residue in transglutaminase in the intestinal tract. (The normal physiological function of transglutaminase is probably the repair of injured or inflamed tissue by cross-linking extracellular matrix proteins in the tissue, thus stabilizing the damaged tissue and protecting the surrounding tissue from further damage.)

Since gluten has an abundance of the amino acid glutamine, it is especially vulnerable to this reaction with transglutaminase. This abnormally linked molecule is then perceived as a foreign antigen by the immune system and antibodies to transglutaminase begin to be produced, inhibiting the normal function of transglutaminase in repairing damaged intestinal mucosa.

Click here to view the Recommendations By Disorder Chart (PDF)

What is the Test Recommended for?

• Celiac disease
• People with high gluten IgG results

Treatment Options

If celiac disease is detected, steps can be taken for appropriate treatment of this condition.

• Restriction of gluten from the diet.
• Eating additional portions of meat, vegetables, and fruits.
• Diet supplementation, primarily with enzymes that aid in digestion of these foods.
• Receiving proper medical supervision with better information about the patient's condition.

Benefits of the Celiac Disease Test

• The test is considered the most specific test for celiac disease with near perfect specificities and sensitivities for celiac disease
• Knowledge to facilitate appropriate treatment
• Consultation about results is included with each test at The Great Plains Laboratory, Inc.