June 3, 2006
Celiac
Question from Clearwater, Florida, USA:
I have had type 1 diabetes for almost eight years. For about five of those years, I have had fluky symptoms of stomach upset, nausea, fatigue, bloating, cramps, constipation, sour stomach, menstrual irregularities, irritability after eating, etc. Sometimes the symptoms are so bad that I feel miserable. I have had an ultrasound of my stomach, which was fine; several blood tests; etc. I recently found a site on celiac disease and its association with diabetes. I have many of the symptoms on there. I had a blood test ordered by the doctor I work for and they came back negative. Are blood tests for celiac negative sometimes? I went and had an endoscopy done a few days ago and they took a biopsy, but those results have not come back yet. If it isn’t celiac, I don’t know what else it could be! What do you think about the blood test and what do you suggest?
Answer:
The biopsy is the gold standard. The blood tests are usually done to figure out who needs a biopsy to make the diagnosis. If the biopsy is negative, it is unlikely you have the condition. There are other conditions associated with diabetes that can cause symptoms of nausea. These include gastroparesis, a motility disorder, that results when the stomach does not have enough movement to cause the food bolus to be moved along the gastrointestinal tract. It also might be unrelated to your diabetes. Make sure you keep in touch with your physician so that they can work with you on this and follow your progress.
JTL
