Increased prevalence of coeliac disease in diabetes. Arch Dis Child 59

SUMMARY A total of 215 diabetic children were screened for coeliac disease by determination of class specific serum reticulin antibody. Nine children were positive for reticulin antibody and all underwent biopsy of the small intestine. Four new cases of coeliac disease were found; all of these children had IgA reticulin antibody. Two of three other children with a low titre of IgA reticulin antibody had partial villous atrophy. It was concluded that IgA class reticulin antibody was a good marker of coeliac disease in diabetic children. The prevalence of coeliac disease in these children was 1:43 (including one previously diagnosed case) and we suggest that diabetic children be screened routinely for reticulin antibody. Coexistence of coeliac disease and juvenile diabetes mellitus has been described in several reports.'-4 Although both Visakorpi2 and Thain et at3 con-sidered this association to be more frequent in children than would be expected to occur by chance alone, this is not generally accepted and according to Walsh et al4 coeliac disease is no more frequent i