A FAMILY STUDY OF COELIAC DISEASE

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Abstract
Small intestinal biopsy was performed in all 100 1st-degree relatives of 32 index patients with childhood celiac disease (CD) diagnosed according to the European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition. CD was found in 2 relatives (2.0%), which means that 1st-degree relatives of celiac children would run a 10-fold increased risk of CD compared with the general population of Sweden. Five relatives had a moderately abnormal mucosa. On rebiopsy, they had a normal mucosa and are therefore not classified as having CD according to current diagnostic criteria. For practical purposes, it would be impossible to perform a biopsy in all 1st-degree relatives of celiac patients. However, relatives with a past history of symptoms suggestive of malabsorption and relatives with present signs of malabsorption should be candidates for biopsy.