<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>
Sorry again to take so long to get this together....I had twelve responses
to my post asking if anyone knew of a link between the two conditions. All
12 said yes. thanks to each of you for the information and support!!
five people wrote they had alopecia or some type of hair loss and also cd.
one person shared a family connection: she and two siblings have cd; her
neice has alopecia
six people sent citations or references to medical information that document
some type of link (I will paste those in at the end for those who are
interested).
one person told me that in Italy all alopecia patients are tested for cd.
one person wrote that he has seen hair loss mentioned often on this list
one person also pointed out that hair loss is a common symptom associated
with many types of gi problems, not just cd.
one person wrote she knows of a celiac without hair
two people stated hair loss can be caused by malnutrition (please see my
note below that alopecia areata is not caused by malnutrition, although
certainly other types of hair loss may be)
one reason I have taken a long time to summarize is that I have been busy
getting hooked up with alopecia resources and dermstologists....I have
learned that no one in the alopecia community seems to know anything about
cd or the tests for it. My local cd support group just sponsored a free
screening day (in conjunction with U MD) and I told the alopecia people
about it so they could get tested....but to my knowledge they didn't follow
up. the dermatologist knew so little about cd that she told my daughter not
to worry about going gf, she could still eat wonder bread!!!
Yesterday I saw Dr. Horvath (U of MD) present at our blood screening, and he
mentioned alopecia areata as a symptom of cd.
We repeated blood tests for cd on our daughter with alopecia and the results
were mixed. Only the IgG was positive. Our gi said there could be many
causes for this, but one possibility is that she has some intestinal
permeability, the wheat (gliadin) is leaking thru, and the immune system is
reacting to it there (in the blood stream). This would not truly be cd,
because in cd the immune system reaction takes place in the intestine. The
only way to be sure would be biopsy. The dermatologist said this "leaky
gut" theory could have been enough to cause the alopecia....she said
anything that "nudges" the immune system can cause alopecia, and the
"treatments" all are attempts to find some way to "nudge it back". she told
us if we decided to try the gf diet with our daughter that we should see
results within 6-8 weeks, if it was going to help at all.
Alopecia areata is an autoimmune condition, and it is not caused by
malnutrition. (other types of hair loss can be). This is a very specific
pattern of spots of hair loss on the head, not over all thinning of hair.
The scalp becomes tight and shiny and looks like there are no hair folicles
where the hair is missing. The cause is that something causes the immune
system to attck the hair at the root, so it breaks off under the scalp and
just slides right out of the head. It can cause total loss of all hair:
body hair, eyelashes, and eyebrows.
To me, this sounded so similar to the mechanism of cd; just happening in a
different part of the body.
My daughter is almost ten, so we involved her in the process of deciding
what to do. She declined the biopsy at this time. She has gone on gf diet
as "an experiment" to see if it will help. She has now been gf three weeks,
and we think it is helping. The first change was that the skin of her scalp
lost that tight shiny look, and began to look normal. Now we can see tiny
little "peach fuzz" growing in her bald spots. (HOORAY!!)
Since alopecia often spontaneously reverses itself, at some point she will
need to go off diet, so we can see what happens.....of course, we will take
that opportunity to repeat blood work and probably biopsy as well. thanks
again to everyone for your help!
Below are excerpts from respnses with medical citations:
Excerpts from "Lifeline", Winter 1997 (Vol. XV, No. 1), CSA/USA, Inc.,
Omaha, NE 68131
Celiac Disease and Alopecia Areata: Celiac disease (CD) is frequently
associated with other auto-immune disorders but not previously with
alopecia areata. [Alopecia areata is a common condition that results
in the loss of hair on the scalp and elsewhere. Modern immunological
research is showing that alopecia areata is probably an autoimmune
disorder, one in which the body forms antibodies against some part of
the hair follicle (a type of "self-allergy").<7>]
In a routine clinical practice, three patients with such an
association were observed. In one of the patients CD was diagnosed
after the occurrence of malabsorption symptoms. Another patient, a
14-year-old boy, experienced complete regrowth of scalp and body hair
after going on a gluten-free (GF) diet. As a result, 256 consecutive
outpatients with alopecia areata were screened using serum antibody
tests. Three patients, all without symptoms of intestinal diseases,
were found to have positive antibody tests and were subsequently
biopsied. All had flat intestinal mucosa consistent with a diagnosis
of CD [a ratio of about 85:1--editor].
The results show that alopecia areata might be the only symptom of
active CD and that the frequency of association may be much greater
than would be expected by chance alone. It is suggested that
antigliadin and antiendomysial antibody tests be included in the
work-up of patients with alopecia areata.<1>
<1> "Celiac disease and alopecia areata: Report of a new
association", Corazza G, et al. _Gastroenterology_, 1995, vol.
109, 1333-1337.
======================
More Medline citations:
1. Backlund I.
[A two-year old girl lost her hair--gluten intolerance was the cause].
Lakartidningen. 1998 Aug 19;95(34):3540-2. Swedish. No abstract available.
2. Bondavalli P, et al.
Failure of gluten-free diet in celiac disease-associated alopecia areata.
Acta Derm Venereol. 1998 Jul;78(4):319. No abstract available.
[MEDLINE record in process]
3. Volta U, et al.
Serological screening for coeliac disease in vitiligo and alopecia areata.
Br J Dermatol. 1997 May;136(5):801-2. No abstract available.
4. Reunala T, et al.
Diseases associated with dermatitis herpetiformis.
Br J Dermatol. 1997 Mar;136(3):315-8.
5. Premate FM.
[Celiac disease today].
Clin Ter. 1996 Oct;147(10):495-503. Review. Italian.
6. Farraj R, et al.
57-year old woman with anemia and rash.
Mayo Clin Proc. 1996 Mar;71(3):303-6. No abstract available.
7. Corazza GR, et al.
Celiac disease and alopecia areata: report of a new association.
Gastroenterology. 1995 Oct;109(4):1333-7.
8. Van Wouwe JP.
Clinical and laboratory diagnosis of acrodermatitis enteropathica.
Eur J Pediatr. 1989 Oct;149(1):2-8. Review.
9. Di Maita M, et al.
[Association of uveitis, alopecia and celiac disease].
Ophtalmologie. 1987 Jul-Sep;1(3):401. French. No abstract available.
10. Harris RL, et al.
Villus atrophy and malabsorption in a rhesus monkey.
Lab Anim Sci. 1984 Dec;34(6):610-3.
11. Prigent F, et al.
[Atopy and associated diseases].
Ann Dermatol Venereol. 1982;109(4):341-53. French.
12. De Dulanto F, et al.
[Acrodermatitis enteropathica].
Actas Dermosifiliogr. 1968 Jul-Aug;59(7):499-515. Spanish. No abstract
available.
per the American family physician article "detecting celiac in your
patients" www.aafp.org/afp/980301ap/pruessn.html
(table 2) it is a symptom of celiac disease. of course there are probably
other causes
Dr. Harold T. Pruessner, MD, discusses alopecia & celiac disease in his
article, "Detecting Celiac Disease in Your Patients", which appeared in the
March 1, 1998 issue of American Family Physician. He gave as a reference
"Celiac disease and alopecia areata: report of a new association", which
was printed in Gastroenterology in 1995 in Volume 109, pages 1333-7.
Quotation:
'Often only one symptom - iron deficiency anaemia, bone
demineralisation, abdominal pain, skin lesions, alopecia or
psychological abnormalities - is present.'
Source:
From Introduction of:
Graziani et al. Severe osteomalacia due to gluten-sensitive enteropathy.
Ann Ital Med Int 1994; 9: 40-43.
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