Unrecognised coeliac disease is common in healthcare students.

C oeliac disease is a lifelong intolerance to dietary gluten. Untreated it can result in malabsorption, vitamin deficiencies, anaemia, and osteoporosis. Although histology remains the cornerstone of diagnosis, over the past decade serological testing for coeliac disease has facilitated the earlier recognition of coeliac disease and the detection of milder cases. Recent studies have suggested that tissue transglutaminase (TTG) antibodies may be used to detect coeliac disease in children with a genetic risk for it. Children at high risk for coeliac disease include those with a family history of coeliac disease, autoimmune thyroid disease, insulin dependent diabetes, Down’s syndrome, and Noonan’s syndrome. Serological prevalence data from a number of studies have indicated that coeliac disease may be far more common in Europe and North Africa than previously thought. It seems likely that there is a similar under-reporting of coeliac disease in the UK, which may have important health consequences as dietary avoidance of gluten results in a complete remission of the disease and prevents the two major complications—malignancy and osteoporosis—as well as decreasing mortality in CD patients. The aim of the study was to prospectively estimate the frequency of coeliac disease in a population of young adults enrolling as healthcare students at the University of Wales College of Medicine.