• Digestive symptoms: bloating, diarrhoea, abdominal discomfort or persistent symptoms not explained by enteropathogens.
• Nutrient absorption concerns: iron deficiency anaemia, low B12 or folate, impaired absorption of fat-soluble vitamins or general nutritional deficiencies.
• Weight and growth concerns: unexplained weight loss or failure to thrive in infants.
• Skin or immune-related symptoms: rashes, skin irritation or autoimmune tendencies under practitioner review.
• Neurological or cognitive concerns: ataxia, peripheral neuropathy or idiopathic neurological presentations.
• Bone and musculoskeletal concerns: low bone density, bone disease or arthritis.
• Hormonal or fertility concerns: menstrual irregularities, hormonal imbalance or fertility difficulties.
• Liver function changes: abnormal or elevated liver function tests without clear cause.
• Family or genetic risk: first-degree relatives of those with coeliac disease or individuals positive for HLA-DQ2/DQ8.
• Metabolic or endocrine conditions: type 1 diabetes or thyroiditis in clients consuming gluten.
• Developmental or behavioural considerations: concerns related to malnutrition or long-term health history in children.

The Celiac & Gluten Sensitivity test measures IgA and IgG antibodies to deamidated gliadin peptide and gliadin using a dried blood spot sample. These markers can help illustrate immune reactivity associated with coeliac disease and non-coeliac gluten sensitivity in clients consuming gluten.

Clinically, this assessment may be useful when exploring digestive symptoms, nutrient absorption concerns, weight or growth changes, skin or immune-related issues, neurological presentations, hormonal or fertility concerns, abnormal liver tests or family risk factors. Evaluating both deamidated gliadin peptide and gliadin antibodies may help practitioners consider patterns associated with gluten-related reactivity.

Practitioners typically interpret these findings in conjunction with dietary intake, symptom history, nutrient status, family history, genetic markers where available, and other relevant assessments. Used in this context, the Celiac & Gluten Sensitivity test can help support practitioner decision-making and contribute to a broader understanding of gluten-related patterns for clients.

Practical

Specimen requirements:

Dried bloodspot sample (DBS). (Only requires a shallow finger prick).

Average processing time:

15 ±6 days

Research

• Ankelo, M; Kleimola, V; Simell, S; Simell, O; Knip, M et al. (2007) Comparative Usefulness of Deamidated Gliadin Antibodies in the Diagnosis of Celiac Disease Antibody responses to deamidated gliadin peptide show high specificity and parallel antibodies to tissue transglutaminase in developing celiac disease. Clinical and experimental immunology vol. 150 (2) p. 285-93.

• Fasano A. Surprises from celiac disease. Scientific Am. 2009;301:54-61.

• Mothes, Thomas. (2007) Deamidated gliadin peptides as targets for Celiac disease-specific antibodies. Advances in Clinical Chemistry vol.44 p. 44.

• Nelsen, Davis A. Jr., M.D., M.S., (2002) Gluten-Sensitive Enteropathy (Celiac Disease): More Common Than You Think. Am Fam Physician. 2002 Dec 15;66(12):2259-2266.

• Parizade, Miriam; Bujanover, Yoram; Weiss, Batya; Nachmias, Vered; Shainberg, Bracha (2009) Performance of serology assays for diagnosing celiac disease in a clinical setting. Clinical and vaccine immunology : CVI vol. 16 (11) p. 1576-82.

• Pietzak, Michelle (2012) Celiac Disease, Wheat Allergy, and Gluten Sensitivity: When Gluten Free Is Not a Fad. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr vol. 36 (1_suppl) p. 68S-75S.

• Rubio-Tapia A, Hill ID, Kelly CP, et al. ACG clinical guidelines: diagnosis and management of celiac disease. Am J Gastroenterol. 2013;108(5):656-76.

• Sapone, Anna; Lammers, Karen; Casolaro, Vincenzo; Cammarota, Marcella; Giuliano, Maria et al. (2011) Divergence of gut permeability and mucosal immune gene expression in two gluten-associated conditions: celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. BMC Medicine vol. 9 (1) p. 23.

• Vermeersch, Pieter; Geboes, Karel; Mariën, Godelieve; Hoffman, Ilse; Hiele, Martin et al. (2010) Diagnostic performance of IgG anti-deamidated gliadin peptide antibody assays is comparable to IgA antitTG in celiac disease. Clinica chimica acta; international journal of clinical chemistry vol. 411 (13-14) p. 931- 5.

• Wang, Ning; Truedsson, Lennart; Elvin, Kerstin; Andersson, Bengt A; Rönnelid, Johan et al. (2014) Serological assessment for celiac disease in IgA deficient adults. PloS one vol. 9 (4) p. e93180.