Children with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) were 4 times more likely to have celiac disease than the general pediatric population, researchers report in a study published online April 21 in JAMA Pediatrics.
“The identification of IBS as a high-risk condition for celiac disease might be of help in pediatric primary care because it might have become routine to test for celiac disease indiscriminately in all children with recurrent abdominal pain, although our finding suggests that the screening should be extended only to those with IBS,” the authors write.
In an accompanying editorial, James E. Squires, MD, from the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Ohio, and colleagues write: “Based on the study by Cristofori et al, we suggest that selective screening for celiac disease is warranted for children with IBS but not for children with other [functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs)]. However, the lines distinguishing IBS from alternative FGIDs are often blurred.”
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