How Can Celiac Disease Be Observed In The Mouth?

                                                                                  Celiac Disease is an immune disease where people cannot eat gluten, which is a protein found in wheat, rye and barley.  It is a digestive and autoimmune disorder that results in damage to the lining of the small intestine when foods with gluten are eaten. Gluten is a form of protein found in some grains.   Bread is out in someone with this disease, however, soy and whey are not a problem.

This, however, does mean a lifelong adherence to the gluten-free diet.  According to the Celiac Disease Foundation, when individuals with celiac disease eat gluten, the villi (tiny hair-like projections in the small intestine that absorb nutrients from food) are damaged. This is due to an autoimmune reaction to gluten. Damaged villi do not effectively absorb basic nutrients – proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals and, in some cases, water and bile salts.

Patients with systematic dental enamel defects should be screened for celiac disease even in the absence of gastrointestinal symptoms, states the Department of Surgical Sciences at the University of Foggia in Italy.

Dentists should play more of a role in screening for celiac disease

 

The Department of Medicine at New York Medical College (Sound Shore Medical Center) in New Rochelle, New York has found that celiac disease is highly associated with dental enamel defects in childhood.  This is where the dental personnel comes in.  The Department of Surgery at the University of Pisa believes that this recognition should lead dentists to play more significant roles in screening for celiac disease, as otherwise, if not properly diagnosed and not treated with a gluten-free diet, may eventually cause some malignancies.

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