What is celiac sprue or celiac disease?

By Karlee J. Ausk, MD


What is celiac sprue?



What are the symptoms of celiac sprue?


  • diarrhea, gas, bloating, weight loss
  • iron deficiency anemia
  • low bone density
  • fatigue
  • abnormal liver tests

How is celiac sprue diagnosed?

Antibody blood tests are available as the first step in testing for celiac sprue.  If this serology is positive, an upper endoscopy should be done to obtain a small intestinal biopsy as the gold standard for celiac sprue diagnosis.  You should continue to eat a regular diet (containing gluten) while getting these tests for an accurate diagnosis. These results should normalize with adherence to a gluten free diet.

How is celiac sprue treated?

Treatment of celiac sprue is through a gluten free diet.  In people with celiac sprue, strict avoidance of gluten is important to prevent subclinical nutritional deficiencies, decrease the risk of small intestinal lymphoma, and (in small studies) decrease the risk of other autoimmune conditions.  If symptoms persist despite a gluten free diet, this could be caused by hidden gluten sources in the diet or a coexisting condition also causing gastrointestinal symptoms.


In a future post, I will discuss the differences between gluten intolerance and celiac sprue.  If you have specific questions or other GI blog topics, please leave them in the comment section so that I can try to address them in the future.

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