Celiac Disease Screening in the Siblings of Pediatric Patients with a Confirmed Diagnosis: A Cross-sectional Study

The close relatives of patients with celiac disease (CD), particularly their siblings, are known to be at a higher risk for CD development.

Our aim was to determine the prevalence of CD in siblings of confirmed CD patients in Lorestan province, Iran, in 2020.

In this cross-sectional study, anti-tissue transglutaminase (tTG) antibody levels were measured in 140 siblings of children with CD. Duodenal biopsies were taken to confirm the diagnosis in those with positive serological tests. The subjects’ demographic and clinical data were recorded into a pre-designed questionnaire, and the collected data were analyzed by SPSS software version 22 at a significance level of 0.05.

Twelve out of 140 subjects (8.6%) tested positive for tTG IgA, eight of them (66.7%) were girls, and most of them (75%) were ≤ 15 years old. Half of the newly diagnosed patients were in the Marsh IIIc category. The Marsh grading had no significant relationship with the serum levels of tTG IgA antibodies (P = 0.319). The most common gastrointestinal symptom was bloating (66.7%), and the most common extraintestinal symptoms were anemia (58.3%) and dental and oral diseases (58.3%).

We found a high prevalence (8.6%) of CD among the siblings of children with confirmed CD. Since the early diagnosis of CD can lead to better management, particularly in pediatrics, it is recommended screen patients’ family members as soon as the diagnosis of CD is confirmed.