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Diagnosis of Celiac Disease

Author/s: 
MD, Marisa G. Stahl, MSCS, Claire Jansson-Knodel

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease that can occur through the lifespan and is characterized by immune-mediated enteropathy in response to dietary gluten.1 Celiac disease affects at least 1% of the global population. Important risk factors are a first-degree relative with celiac disease, carrying specific genetic variants, presence of other autoimmune conditions (eg, type 1 diabetes, Hashimoto thyroiditis), and certain chromosomal disorders (eg, Down syndrome, Turner syndrome, Williams syndrome).

Typical gastrointestinal symptoms include diarrhea (38%), abdominal discomfort (34%), and weight loss from malabsorption (16%).2 Subjective improvement in symptoms with a gluten-free diet has a poor positive predictive value (PPV) for celiac disease (36%), making objective testing essential. Diagnostic guidelines (Table) recommend performing serologic testing in individuals with symptoms and/or signs suggestive of celiac disease while they are consuming a diet containing gluten, which is present in wheat, barley, and rye. Gluten reduction or removal from the diet impairs the diagnostic accuracy of screening.3-7 For patients already following a gluten-free diet, gluten consumption must be resumed prior to screening. However, there is no consensus for the dose or duration of gluten consumption that should be maintained through second confirmatory tests. Of the 2 most recent guidelines, one does not specify a dose or duration4 and one suggests at least 3 g per day for at least 6 weeks.3

Keywords 
celiac disease diagnosis health education serologic diagnosis

What Is Celiac Disease?

Author/s: 
Kristin L. Walter

Celiac disease is a chronic autoimmune disease caused by consumption of gluten in people with specific genetic markers. Celiac disease affects about 1% of people worldwide and people can start having symptoms at any age. Individuals at increased risk include those with a first-degree relative who has celiac disease and those with autoimmune diseases (eg, type 1 diabetes or Hashimoto thyroiditis) and certain chromosomal conditions (Down syndrome, Turner syndrome, or Williams syndrome).

Keywords 
celiac disease patient education health education

The effects of a home-based exercise intervention on elderly patients with knee osteoarthritis: a quasi-experimental study

Author/s: 
Chen, Hongbo, Zheng, Xiaoyan, Huang, Hongjie, Liu, Congying, Wan, Qiaoqin, Shang, Shaomei

BACKGROUND:

Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is common in elderly people, causes pain, loss of physical functioning, and disability. This was a two-arm, superiority, quasi-experimental trial. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a home-based exercise intervention (HBEI) to reduce KOA symptoms and improve the physical functioning of elderly patients.

METHODS:

A total of 171 elderly patients (60 years of age or older) with KOA were recruited from four community centers. Patients from two community centers were randomly assigned to the intervention group (IG) and the other two centers were randomly assigned to the control group (CG). Participants in the IG received a 12-week HBEI (including four 2-h sessions supervised by a physiotherapist and fortnightly telephone support) combined with health education, while patients in the CG only received health education. The participants and physiotherapists were aware of the group assignment and alternative treatment components, but the study's hypotheses were not disclosed to the participants. Pain intensity, joint stiffness, lower-limb muscle strength, balance, mobility, and quality of life were measured before and after the intervention by the same blinded assessor.

RESULTS:

A total of 171 patients (IG: n = 84, CG: n = 87) were enrolled. Data were obtained from 141 patients with an average age of 68 (range, 60-86 years) who completed the 12-week study (IG: n = 71, CG: n = 70). No significant group differences were found in any outcome measures at baseline. At week 12, the pretest/posttest changes 3significant between-group differences in decreases in pain intensity (- 1.60 (CI, - 2.75 to - 0.58)) and stiffness (- 0.79 (CI, - 1.37 to - 0.21)), with the IG exhibiting significantly larger improvements on both measures than the CG. The IG also showed significantly greater improvements on all the secondary outcomes than the CG did.

CONCLUSIONS:

HBEI may be effective for relieving KOA symptoms, increasing the physical functioning, and improving quality of life in community-dwelling KOA elderly patients. A large randomized controlled trial with long-term follow-up is needed to confirm these findings.

Keywords 
osteoarthritis physical therapy health education
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