Benefit of Gluten-free Diet in Older Celiac Disease Patients
Benefit of Gluten-free Diet in Older Celiac Disease Patients
Screen-detected, apparently asymptomatic older celiac disease patients may suffer from subclinical malabsorption, gastrointestinal symptoms or bone disease, which are alleviated during gluten-free dietary treatment. No deterioration in quality of life was seen in our series, and dietary compliance was excellent. Despite this, we consider that there is still insufficient evidence to advocate mass screening, until the costs and benefits of the approach have been thoroughly evaluated. Instead, as the majority of patients had a family history or associated conditions known to occur with celiac disease, we recommend active case finding in older people belonging to at-risk groups.
Conclusions
Screen-detected, apparently asymptomatic older celiac disease patients may suffer from subclinical malabsorption, gastrointestinal symptoms or bone disease, which are alleviated during gluten-free dietary treatment. No deterioration in quality of life was seen in our series, and dietary compliance was excellent. Despite this, we consider that there is still insufficient evidence to advocate mass screening, until the costs and benefits of the approach have been thoroughly evaluated. Instead, as the majority of patients had a family history or associated conditions known to occur with celiac disease, we recommend active case finding in older people belonging to at-risk groups.