Celiac Disease Screening Test

Celiac disease is an autoimmune and digestive disorder. When you have celiac disease, your immune system attacks your small intestine whenever you eat foods containing gluten (a protein found in wheat, rye, barley, and triticale) because it mistakes gluten as a threat to your body. This damages the small intestine and prevents you from getting the nutrients you need from food.

This test may be right for you if you are having symptoms when eating foods that contain gluten (wheat, barley, rye, triticale), such as:

• Abdominal pain

• Abdominal bloating

• Constipation or diarrhea

• Excessive gas

• Nausea or vomiting

• Unexpected weight loss

This test may not be right for you if:

• You have already been diagnosed with celiac disease

• You are not currently eating a gluten-containing diet or have not eaten gluten-containing foods in the last three months. (Though you should talk to your healthcare provider for guidance before adding gluten back into your diet for testing!)

If you have any serious symptoms, please seek medical attention right away.

You may be at increased risk for celiac disease if you:

• Have a family member with celiac disease

• Have other autoimmune disorders

• Have Type 1 diabetes

While we can’t speak to other tests specifically, we can say that the Celiac Disease Screening Test follows a clinically-accepted testing algorithm that measures tTg-IgA and total IgA, with reflex to DGP-IgG.

The instruments and methods used by our laboratories are similar—and often exactly the same—as those used by a doctor’s office. Our at-home sample collection methods, like dried blood spot and saliva, have been widely used for decades.

This test checks for antibodies that, when present, may indicate celiac disease. These antibodies include:

• Total immunoglobulin A (IgA, included as a test control)

• Tissue transglutaminase immunoglobulin A (tTG-IgA)

• Deamidated gliadin peptide immunoglobulin G (DGP-IgG, included only as needed)

When you have celiac disease and ingest gluten, your immune system may react by releasing the antibodies tTG-IgA and DGP-IgG, which cause inflammation and damage to your small intestine. You may have celiac disease if you have these antibodies along with symptoms.

Only a healthcare provider or specialist can confirm celiac disease by reviewing your medical history and symptoms and by performing additional tests if needed.

The Celiac Disease Screening Test follows a clinically-accepted testing method that measures tTg-IgA and total IgA, with reflex to DGP-IgG, antibodies that, when present, may indicate celiac disease. Here’s how the process works:

• The first step includes testing both tTg-IgA and total IgA. (tTg-IgA is the preferred and most sensitive test for possible detection of celiac disease in people with normal total IgA levels.)

• The next step, DGP-IgG testing, is only completed if your tTg-IgA is negative and total IgA is low or could not be determined. DGP-IgG is tested additionally here because those individuals with low total IgA, or an IgA deficiency, will test negative for tTg-IgA. (DGP-IgG is another antibody released by the immune system in someone who may have celiac disease.)

• Lastly, DGP-IgG is completed in this case to help to rule out an IgA deficiency being the cause for low tTg-IgA and help aid in the possible detection of celiac disease in those with low total IgA.

Food sensitivities are distinctly different from celiac disease. Food sensitivities can cause a wide range of symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, indigestion, and headaches or migraines.

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder in which the immune system reacts to gluten. It involves inflammation and damage to your small intestine and prevents your body from getting the nutrients you need from food. Celiac disease can cause both digestive and other bodily symptoms.

Because these are two very different conditions, the antibodies measured are also different. Food sensitivities have links to IgG antibody levels, and celiac disease has links to tTg-IgA and DGP-IgG antibodies. 

A diagnostic test is completed to either diagnose or rule out a specific health condition. The results of diagnostic tests alone provide enough confidence for a healthcare provider to diagnose and make treatment determinations.

A screening test is done to help determine a risk for a specific health condition. The results of screening tests alone cannot be used to confirm or rule out a particular diagnosis. If positive, the results are to be used by a healthcare provider in combination with symptoms, medical and family history, and additional testing as needed to aid in diagnosing or ruling out a disease.

The Celiac Disease Screening Test checks for antibodies that, when present or elevated, may indicate celiac disease. This is intended to be a first step in the process of determining if you have celiac disease. Positive results are not a diagnosis of celiac disease but may mean you need further evaluation and additional testing, which might include an endoscopy.

• Symptoms of celiac disease may include:

  • Digestive symptoms: abdominal pain or bloating, diarrhea or constipation, gas, nausea/vomiting, unexpected weight loss

  • Non-digestive symptoms: anemia, bone/joint pain, fatigue, headaches, bone loss, peripheral neuropathy

  If you have any serious symptoms, please seek medical attention right away.

Your results will tell you if you have certain antibodies that are associated with celiac disease. These antibodies include total immunoglobulin A (IgA), tissue transglutaminase immunoglobulin A (tTG-IgA), and deamidated gliadin peptide immunoglobulin G (DGP-IgG, included only as needed).

When you have celiac disease and ingest gluten, your immune system reacts by releasing these antibodies, which cause inflammation and damage your small intestine. You may have celiac disease if you have these antibodies along with symptoms.

Only a healthcare provider or specialist can confirm celiac disease by performing additional tests and reviewing your medical history and symptoms.

A member of our patient care team will reach out to you if your results show an indeterminate or increased risk of celiac disease. Everlywell can provide answers to commonly asked questions about these results and help prepare you for a productive and thoughtful conversation with your healthcare provider. It’s important to share your results and any symptoms you are having with your healthcare provider, who can review your results, along with your medical history and symptoms, and order additional celiac disease testing that may be needed to determine if celiac disease is affecting your health.

A food allergy is what happens when your immune system mistakes a certain food as a threat to your body (this is then called an “allergen”) and produces IgE antibodies as a result. Food allergies have distinct symptoms, such as itching, hives, nausea, vomiting, and difficulty breathing, and can be serious and life-threatening. The Food Allergy Test results will tell you whether you have IgE reactivity to the food allergens tested. The results of this test may be used, along with your medical history and symptoms, by your healthcare provider to help create a plan that’s right for you.

Food sensitivity testing shows IgG antibody reactivity to different foods. IgG and IgE are different types of antibodies. Food sensitivity can cause a wide range of symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, indigestion, and headaches. These symptoms are generally more delayed in nature than food allergy symptoms. Food sensitivity testing is intended to identify foods in your current diet that might be connected to food sensitivity symptoms. The results can help a person prioritize which foods to consider for a two-part elimination diet.

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder in which the immune system reacts to gluten. It involves inflammation and damage to your small intestine and prevents your body from getting the nutrients you need from food. Celiac disease can cause both digestive and other bodily symptoms. These symptoms are generally delayed. The Celiac Disease Screening Test measures another type of antibody called tTG-IgA (and DGP-IgG if indicated), and may be a first step in the process of checking for celiac disease.

• American College of Gastroenterology (ACG)

• Celiac Disease Foundation