Diagnosing celiac disease: a review of diagnostic modalities of celiac disease

Celiac disease is known as gluten-sensitive enteropathy. By enteropathy it simply means it is pathology of the gastrointestinal tract and that is why diarrhea (a common GI symptom) is usually one of the commonest presentations of celiac disease. So, it is safe to define celiac disease as an autoimmune disorder that mainly afflicts the small intestine. By autoimmune authors are referring to a disorder in which the body’s immune system works against the body itself. It is a chronic disorder where the sufferer is not able to tolerate gliadin, which is the alcohol soluble component of gluten. Gluten of course is a protein that is usually found in common foods like barley and wheat. Celiac disease which can also be regarded as celiac sprue has a genetic and immunological aspect to its etiology both of which would need to be considered when screening anyone for celiac disease