Clinical Presentation of Celiac Disease in Children: A Single Center Experience

Objective: This study was an examination of the presenting complaints, clinical and laboratory data and biopsy reports of 174 celiac patients. The primary aims were to emphasize the presentation patterns of patients that certain complaints need to be queried even if they are not mentioned. Our secondary aim is to increase the awareness of investigating patients' first-degree family members, risk groups otherwise they have no complaints. Methods: Presenting complaints, anthropometric data, biopsy reports were recorded by retrospectively examining the files of patients diagnosed with celiac disease (CD). In each diagnosis of CD, tissue transglutaminase IgA antibody, anti endomysium antibody titer and histopathological Marsh classification have been conducted. Results: The prevalence of patients with weight and height below the 3rd percentile was 29.3%. In the order of frequency, the patients' most common presenting complaints were abdominal pain 64.4%, growth retardation 51.1%, diarrhea 36.8%, constipation 32.2% and halitosis 32.2%. It was found that 15.5% of the patients had no complaint. Physical examination was normal in 87.4% patients. When family members were questioned about the disease, it was determined that 20% of the patient families had one or more individuals with CD. Conclusion: It was found that the rate of growth retardation is high in our population and increased with an increase in the duration of complaints. This shows the importance of early diagnosis and treatment for a quality of life. Additionally, particularly the first-degree relatives of CD patients should be questioned routinely, even if there are no complaints.