Relationship between Behavioral Disorders and Quality of Life in Patients with Celiac Disease

Celiac disease (CD) has an autoimmune disease in response to ingestion of foods containing gluten sausing damage to the mucosal tissue of small intestine. The disease can severely affect quality of life. This study aims to assess the relationship between behavioral disorders and quality of life (QOL) in patients with celiac disease. 87 celiac patients and 100 healthy individuals are selected and matched for age, sex and education. Patients with Celiac disease were recruited from a subspecialty clinic in Imam Reza (AS) Hospital and clinic in Ghaem in Mashhad. The control group consisted of healthy participants. Participants completed the Beck Depression Inventory, State Anxiety Inventory-Trait Spielberger, Toronto Alexithymia Questionnaire and SF-36 Quality of Life Questionnaire. Research data were analyzed by Pearson correlation and multiple regression analyses.There was no significant difference between the two groups in demographic variables. However significant differences existed between the variables of anxiety, depression and alexithymia. The patient group had higher depression and anxiety levels compared to healthy controls. Multiple regression analysis showed behavioral disorders, explains 43% of the variance in quality of life in patients with CD. Overall, the findings indicate there is a direct link between behavioral disorder and reduced quality of life of celiac patients. Psychotherapy and cognitive behavioral therapy can improve emotional patterns and cognition of celiac patients.