Cuban Doctors Claim Simple Blood Test Can Detect Celiac Disease

In a letter in the March 15, 2002, issue of The Lancet, doctors at the Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in Havana report using a simple 10-minute blood test that recognizes antibodies in the blood to diagnose Celiac disease, rather than a biopsy. Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease caused by an intolerance to gluten, which is found in wheat, barley and rye. In a test of 90 people the test correctly identified 50 individuals with celiac disease and produced negative results for those without it. Dr. Luis Sorrell suggests that the blood test could be useful for diagnosing the disease in high-risk groups such as diabetics, people with other autoimmune diseases, and close relatives of celiac disease patients.

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