<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

I received 20 thoughtful responses to my question
about GF anesthesia. Seven were very sure that
anesthesia does not contain gluten. Three of those
from folks with medical credentials. About seven folks
suggested strongly that I check out the specific
anesthesia first.  One person narrowly averted a
problem with some diagnostic testing (not
anesthesia)by checking it out.  Thank you to everyone
who took the time to respond and wish me well.

Here are some select responses:

Contact Stokes Pharmacy in Medford, NJ and get a copy
of their book (about $30) on gf medicines, etc. It
might help. You can ask the doctor exactly what
anesthetic he's going to use and what the manufacturer
is. Any doctor (and library) has the Physician's
Reference Handbook, which (also Stokes' book) has
phone numbers for the drug companies. You call the
company and ask their own pharmacists if it's gluten
free. It does the trick.

And,
Anesthesia is either inhaled as gas or given
intravaneously in liquid form, so it doesn't matter
whether it's GF or not.  Only the medicines that are
swallowed or rubbed on the skin (for those with DH)
cause problems.

And,
- I don't think that anethesia is anything to worry
about - because the anesthesia is not ingested into
our intestines - it simply goes through our
bloodstream.  I have had major and minor (inpatient
and outpatient) surgery at least five times since I
was diagnosed with celiac and I have never had a
problem of any kind.   The only thing I would ever be
concerned with is anything they give me to drink or
pills to take when at the hospital - and of course,
the food is not always gluten free, no matter what
they say.  Good luck!

And,
I would suggest you ask your questions at this other
excellent site:
http://forums.delphiforums.com/celiac/messages/
There are kind and knowledgeable people there.

And,
My dad, an anesthesiologist, and also a grandpa of a
celiac son (diagnosed 10 years; my dad has been
studying it ever since) gave this reply:

Anything introduced into the blood stream can find
its way to the intestinal villi through the "back
door," so to speak. And, anything injected into the
epidural space or spinal fluid eventually finds its
way into the blood stream. Of course, the
concentration in the blood is much reduced by dilution
and the natural removal processes, so that the amount
reaching the villi would be minute. More important,
however, is that I can't think of anything I would use
in a spinal/epidural which would include gluten.

Could be I'm wrong and we should check the product
ingredients lists, but I really can't imagine it.

And,
I am an anesthesiologist and a celiac. I can assure
you that anesthesia is gluten free.You are aware that
you need to ingest gluten to have a reaction.  All
intravenous and inhaled gases will not reach the
intestines and cannot cause a celiac reaction anyway.

Arnold Bodner, MD

And the other side,
Good friend of mine with undiagnosed DH had a similar
problem ... the doctor wasn't convinced about celiac,
so he wanted to do a barium ultrasound [?] of her
abdomen to rule out other issues. The barium had
gluten in it.  And, when I did my endoscopy, the
IV had wheat starch in it ... The only way my friend
found out about the barium was hounding the hospital
nurse, and then the manufacturer.

Again, I appreciate the many thoughtful responses to
my question.  I will check it out, but feel fairly
confident already that I will do fine.

Thanks,
Liz in MD