Does my son have celiac disease?

I recently saw a show on celiac disease and questioned if my son may fit this situation.  He is 10 years old.  For his age he is very underweight(50 lbs) and has problems with constipation.  At his yearly physicall his doctor was concerned about his weight but never recommended anything. I have to constantly hound him to eat at dinner time but tends to want to snack alot. He is very picky about what foods he eats.  He prefers to drink mostly milk and very little meat.  His study's in school rank very low in reading activities.  He has had medical problems with his hearing at a very young age but has been diagnosed with no problems anymore.  He has a hard time retaining information from reading, which is an issue at school.  He tends to play by himself, not sure if he is having a hard time contecting with other children or if their activities bore him.  This behavior was more obvious before he entered school.  Recently his teacher has recommended he be put on medication for ADD.  I have never noticed him to be stereotyped with this.  Looking for answeres... I am not willing to medicate my child with one person's opinion.  I believe there is more to it.  I do not believe this is his issue(ADD).  Could you recommend any sites or literature I might need to find answeres.  Thanks so much.

[Kevin Pho, MD]

If there is concern about celiac disease, there are some blood tests that can be done.  

The initial test would be a blood test looking for the IgA endomysial antibody.

There are other tests that can be used based on clinical suspicion.  This can include the antigliadin antibody as well as transglutaminase antibodies.

If the tests are non-revealing, you can consider a biopsy of the small bowel.  

More information can be found here:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/celiacdisease.html

Followup with your personal physician is essential.

This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

Kevin, M.D.
http://www.straightfromthedoc.com

[LukeL]

I assume you watched Myster Diagnosis on Discovery Health.

I would go to his doctor and bring a list with all his symptoms and your conerns so you do not forget anything.