Gene Testing and Celiac Disease

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Feb 13, 2015 | Kanaaz Pereira, Connect Moderator | @kanaazpereira

Celiac disease (CD) is an immune-based reaction to gluten — a protein in wheat, rye and barley — that results in damage to the small intestine mucosa. It occurs in genetically predisposed children and adults and usually responds to a gluten-free diet. Imad Absah, M.D., comments on the publication of two influential studies in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2014. "Those two very good trials found that the age at which gluten is introduced into a child's diet has little or no association with the risk of CD," he explains.

Read more in the Digestive Diseases Update.

For more information about celiac disease, visit mayoclinic.org/celiacdisease.

Dr. Absah is a pediatric gastroenterologist at Mayo Clinic. Content originally posted on mayoclinic.org.