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                    TCCSSG PROFILE: Jacob Meyers
                    ----------------------------
                           by Judy Hafner

This month's profile addresses celiac disease (CD) in the life of a
preschooler.

3 1/2 year old Jacob Meyers has been sick much of his life, but due
to his parents' persistence in searching for the cause, he is now a
growing and much healthier youngster.

The diarrhea started about a year and a half ago.  Thinking Jacob's
problem might be high fat content in his diet, his mom, Karen, began
cooking low fat dishes.  However, his illnesses continued.  He had
his tonsils and adenoids removed, and then had tubes put in his ears
at the age of thirteen months.  At sixteen months, Jacob had
emergency surgery for a double hernia repair.  Strep throat was a
recurring problem.  Antibiotics failed to solve any of these
problems.

Jacob's pediatrician decided to run some tests.  He was found to be
anemic, and the IgA test came back below eight, the minimum on the
chart.  The doctor put Jacob on iron and referred him to the
University of Michigan hospital.  Jacob's immune system appeared to
be depressed, so he was all the more susceptible to infection.

The diarrhea began again sometime around November, 1993.  Jacob was
in the hospital by June.  This time the diagnosis was Giardia.  No
weight gain had taken place during the preceding year.  The doctor
didn't refer Jacob anywhere else, as everything else appeared to be
normal.  Jacob was lethargic, lying in front of the television for
hours.  He was often up all night screaming because of gas pains.
His hands also hurt.  (Joint pain?)  It was then suggested that Jacob
may have Irritable Bowel Syndrome, so he was put on a diet of bananas
and Jello.

Karen persisted in looking for answers.  She spoke with her insurance
company and persuaded them to allow a visit to Dr. Olson, a pediatric
gastroenterologist.  Dr. Olson, working out of the Kalamazoo Center
for Medical Studies, came up with a diagnosis of celiac disease.
This was determined from a blood test at age 2-1/2 and a biopsy
performed a month before Jacob's third birthday.

The nutritionist at the hospital in Kalamazoo recommended contacting
CSA/USA in Omaha.  CSA/USA responded with some reading materials and
a copy of their quarterly newsletter, The Lifeline.  The Meyers' had
not yet learned of TCCSSG.

Jacob has been on a gluten-free diet since October 6, 1994.  Since
then he has flourished, having gained nine pounds, 4-1/2 inches, and
four shoe sizes!  He develops symptoms of gas, diarrhea, or vomiting
within a few hours if he accidentally ingests gluten; so his parent's
have taken care to see that he strictly follows the diet.

In December 1994 Jacob had another cold, for which he received a
prescription.  He continued to get sicker and his medication did not
seem to be helping.  Karen went to see Nancy Burke, a dietitian from
U of M and fellow member of TCCSSG.  She referred Karen to Kathy
Davis.  Kathy told Karen that some celiacs do not absorb antibiotics
very well.  Kathy referred Karen to Mary Guerriero as she had just
received another celiac support group newsletter with specific
discussion of antibiotics<2>.  This discussion included lists of
medications that celiacs don't absorb well (such as amoxycillin), and
which ones they do absorb well (such as erthromycin).  (Note from Dr.
Alexander:  The significance of these differences in actual clinical
settings is not well established, particularly for those celiacs
whose disease is under good control.)

Mary returned Karen's call, only to find she had Jacob at the
hospital with a 105 degree fever.  Douglas, Jacob's father, took the
call.  While holding a crying baby, he carefully took down the names
of the various medications, their absorption properties, and the
medical references from which this information was obtained.  He then
drove to the hospital and handed the information to the doctors.  The
doctors changed Jacob's medication to one of those suggested in the
article and Jacob almost immediately took a turn for the better.  He
was discharged home on Christmas Eve. What could have been an
extremely serious condition instead became a manageable one.

Jacob's parents are grateful to TCCSSG for the information, the
shopping list, and all the support they've received, stating, "They
have definitely made a difference in our lives." This is a good
example of Celiacs helping Celiacs.