The presence of serum tissue transglutaminase and endomysial autoantibodies is predictive of small-bowel abnormalities indicative of celiac disease. There is a good correlation between autoantibody positivity and specific HLA haplotypes. We estimate that the prevalence of celiac disease among Finnish schoolchildren is at least 1 case in 99 children.

No abstract

High levels of IgA-TGA and IgG-TGA antibodies were associated with the grade of mucosal villous atrophy and a more severe clinical presentation. The combined measurement of IgA-TGA and IgG-TGA enables a noninvasive prediction of small intestinal villous atrophy with high accuracy, and may reduce the need for a biopsy in patients with suspected CD.

No abstract

In children older than 18 months, both tTG-IgA and EMA-IgA are sufficiently accurate to be used as a single antibody marker, whereas a large proportion of younger children with CD lack these antibodies. Therefore, when selecting children for small intestinal biopsy, the detection of a combination of AGA-IgA and tTG-IgA is optimal for identifying untreated CD in children younger than 18 months.