November 16, 2004
Aches and Pains, Celiac
Question from Botswana, Africa:
My daughter has almost daily complaints about her sore stomach. This happens at different times of the day and doesn’t seem to bear any resemblance to her glucose readings. We do know that when she is getting really low, one of her warning signs is a sore stomach, but lately she has been complaining even when her readings are not low. There does exist the possibility that she is simply manipulating us for extra snacks since we usually give her something small, which does seem to help the problem.
However, we need to know whether there is a chance of her really having a valid complaint. We don’t want to dismiss her complaints and find out later that she had a real problem. Is this type of pain common in diabetic kids?
Answer:
Certainly, it is worth checking blood glucose results when she complains of pain, but it is also worth telling your diabetes team about this as they will check a blood test for signs of a condition known as celiac disease. This is due to sensitivity to gluten and is more common in patients with diabetes and can cause abdominal pain.
KJR
