Gluten Allergy or Celiac's Disease

You may want to go to a pediatric gastroenterologist most offices are unable to do the blood work for Celiac Disease. My son was diagnosed fifteen years ago and the only lab processing the blood test was in California at the time so we had to go to Childrens Medical Center in Dallas to have the blood test done. (It requires a certain type of tube for the blood to go in and needs to be processed a certain way)
People with celiac disease have higher than normal levels of certain autoantibodies—proteins that react against the body’s own cells or tissues—in their blood. To diagnose celiac disease, doctors will test blood for high levels of anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies (tTGA) or anti-endomysium antibodies (EMA). If test results are negative but celiac disease is still suspected, additional blood tests may be needed.

THIS IS Important Before being tested, one should continue to eat a diet that includes foods with gluten, such as breads and pastas. If a person stops eating foods with gluten before being tested, the results may be negative for celiac disease even if the disease is present.

If blood tests and symptoms suggest celiac disease, a biopsy of the small intestine is performed to confirm the diagnosis

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Bullard, Jeff MD - Max Health Family Medicine

* ###-###-####

5207 Heritage Ave, Colleyville, TX 76034

Love the doctors at Max Health, its worth the drive if you are not close, they do everything in house. (which is cheaper on insurance too) I just had my daughter tested last month.

GL!

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Are you just wanting a formal diagnosis? If not, there is no reason for bloodwork, etc. Besides, the gold standard of testing is the elimination diet where you completely eliminate the offending food for 2-4 weeks or until the symptoms have disappeared. After that, you can add the offender back in for a day or 2 and see if the symptoms reappear. If they do, you have your answer. Join Yahoo group Foodlab--there is tons of great info. Good luck.

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Often getting a blood test at the hospital is better. Especially if it is a childrens hospital. They are so good with children and make the blood test easier.

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If I were you I'd seek out a pediatric gastroenterologist.

I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to go to the hospital for bloodwork? Definitely get the blood tests before you consider trying a gluten free diet. If the test are inconclusive you could get her vitamin levels checked. (for example low vitamin d can cause bone aches- my cousin with gi/absorption problems had bone aches and undetectable vitamin D levels plus very low B-12).

You might also want to get her screened for thyroid problems. Hypothyroidism can cause slowed growth, constipation, and aches and pains.

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My daughter had the exact same symptoms a couple of years ago. Luckily we have a wonderful doc who listened to us! He x-rayed her bowels & sure enough she was literally full of poop ;) He said she had little balls of poop throughout her intestines that weren't being broken down & excreted. He said it was due to being lactose intolerant. We stopped all milk, cheese, yogurt & anything else w/ milk in it. Gave her a med called Kondramul (over the counter but the pharmacy keeps it w/ them). It's a natural stool softner/laxative. She took it for about a week combined with no milk & she was fine. Now anytime she has too much milk or milk products she gets a tummy ache & we know to lay off the dairy. It's worth a shot seeing if she's lactose intolerant to save her on doctors visits & being poked by needles. Keep us posted & good luck!!

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Hi T.,
I think it's a great idea to explore food allergies as I have a history of food allergies and it was a BIG relief when I found out what they were! I recommend Dr. Gonino (Gonino Center For Healing) in Heath, TX (close to Rockwall). That's where my family and I go and he is wonderful! He has a test for gluten allergies in his office and he has a test for other food allergies as well. I personally have allergies to gluten and dairy (an so does my son), so I know how challenging this can be. If you'd like more advice, I'm happy to help and you can call me at ###-###-#### or email me at ____@____.com name is S. Anthony. Good Luck! :-)

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Short but sweet.Go to a holistic center to get a full allergy test done.
Best thing I ever done for my son,his allergic to dairy,wheat,apples.
Good Luck
B. K.

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Definitely find someone who will draw blood and check for elevated levels indicating celiac. My daughter was diagnosed in February with celiac and her only symptoms were irritability, moodiness and difficulty sleeping. We were at our wits end and kind of "lucked" in to this diagnosis. She's been gluten free ever since and it has made all the difference in the world.

Definitely have her blood checked before you put her on a gluten free diet though. If you eliminate gluten and then get her blood checked it will not show accurate results.

Good luck! Sounds like you need to find a new doctor.

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My pedi sent us to a gastro dr. The 1st thing he did was blood work, it cam back high so we did an endoscopy, that came back normal. My daughter just turned 3 but in january she got sick for a day or so and he said the test showed some mild gastroitis, we took prevacid for a month and she seems good now. They also thought she had celiacs. I would go to a gastro dr.
M.

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Does your doctor's office have a lab to do blood tests. If so ask if they can draw the blood and send it out to a lab that tests for gluten disorders. My daughter was tested and found to be gluten intolerant. She went to a lab with her doctor's orders to have her blood drawn. They sent the results to her doctor who then called her several days later.

It's more likely that she's gluten sensitive which means that she'll have to avoid gluten in her diet. You don't have to have a test to eliminate gluten from her diet and see if that helps.

I'm somewhat confused by your post. You want to get results the same day? I don't understand why you don't want to follow your doctor's protocol.

I do not think that either gluten conditions or food allergies would cause her bones and back to hurt. I have numerous food allergies and aching bones and back are not recognized as symptoms. Her stomach aches can be the result of a food allergy. However, I suggest that there would be other symptoms as well such as flatulence, diarrhea, hives, headaches, itchy throat and ears.

Stomach aches are common among children. Have you talked with her pediatrician about possible causes and tried other remedies. Feeling tense and anxious can cause those symptoms. I have an anxiety disorder and sometimes don't realize I'm feeling stressed until my whole body aches. Then I work on using relaxing skills and getting more physical exercise.

Your daughter's symptoms can also be growth pains. Some doctors say that there are no such pains but others say there are. I've experienced them in myself and others. You don't say how old she is. This could be a cause. Have you talked with her pediatrician about that possibility and what to expect?

Later, after your update. Constipation can cause back aches. How have you treated the constipation? Does she drink plenty of liquids and eat a high fiber diet. Have you used a stool softener? If you've gone that route and it's not helped it's time to take her to a specialist, perhaps a pediatric gastroenterologist.

Immuno Laboratories is a lab I HIGHLY recommend. My pedi, Dr. Bain uses them and the tests we have done with my daughters, me, my twin sister, and too many friends to name have been reliable. A doctor needs to order the test, which you can find a list of doctors that will from Immuno, and then go to a lab to have the draw done. The draw itself is not too bad, just make sure she is hydrated (I gave my girls a juice box on the way) and it will flow faster---at least for my one daughter it made all the difference. I will provide a few names that may be able to help guide you:

Dr. Bain
www.healthypediatrics.com

Dr. Shepherd
http://mountainhealthchiropractic.com

Good luck,
Follow your gut.

while you are waiting, why don't you go ahead and take her off of wheat gluten? Both my older sister and my dad have this and it is a big change to your/her diet- but it was well worth it for both of them. My dad said all he ate for the first month was corn tortillas, rice and beans! But there are a lot of gluten free mixes out there also for things like pancakes and biscuits. You have to make sure to read the label on things like canned soup because a lot of things contain wheat gluten. More fruits and veggies, nuts, yogurt and things like that. At least this way she will get some relief (if this is what she has) while you are looking at your options with getting her tested. I think for both my dad and my sister it took about a week to get all the wheat out of their system.
God Bless!
~C.