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Here's a new coeliac disease overview... a good handout to give to your
uninformed primary care physician.  The full text and PDF versions of the
article are free.

Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2003 Apr;17(8):987-95

The diagnosis of coeliac disease.
Abdulkarim AS, Murray JA.
Marshfield Clinic, Marshfield, WI, USA; Mayo Clinic and Foundation,
Rochester, MN, USA.

Coeliac disease is a chronic inflammatory condition associated with small
intestinal injury that results in the malabsorption of different nutrients.
The damaging factor is gluten present in wheat, barley and rye. The
diagnosis relies on the clinical picture of the patient, serological
markers for coeliac disease, characteristic findings of small intestinal
biopsy and, eventually, clinical improvement on a gluten-free diet. Our
strategies for the diagnosis of coeliac disease have changed dramatically
within the last 10 years. The advent of serological markers with high
sensitivity and specificity is changing our understanding of the disease
and its prevalence. Treatment includes a life-long gluten-free diet to
prevent the recurrence of symptoms and other potential consequences. Most
coeliac disease remains under-diagnosed; the utilization of more accurate
serological tests and a greater awareness of its many presentations will
aid its identification.

The full text is available at (paste the web address together on one line):

http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/links/doi/10.1046/j.1365-
2036.2003.01442.x/full/

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