Connect Sign InUpdates on Laboratory Testing and Clinical Diagnosis of Celiac Disease
Annually, millions of patients seek medical advice due to chronic gastrointestinal issues. One challenge for gastroenterologists is differentiating between highly prevalent functional disorders, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and immune-mediated conditions such as Celiac disease that require more aggressive management. Advancements in noninvasive serology-based diagnostic tests have reduced the need for invasive procedures. These developments simultaneously have created challenges with test utilization due to varying diagnostic accuracies and lack of guidance. Recently, there has been new recommendations for the laboratory testing and clinical diagnosis of celiac disease, including recommendations for biopsy-free diagnosis. During this presentation, current updates on analytical and clinical recommendations, developments in testing methodologies and strategies, including reflex algorithms, and gaps in the laboratory diagnosis and management of patients with celiac disease will be discussed. Laboratorians and healthcare providers may find the session informative to help mitigate inappropriate testing and optimize patient outcomes in suspected celiac disease patients.
Dr. Vijayalakshmi (Viji) Nandakumar is a medical director of Immunology at ARUP Laboratories, and an assistant professor (clinical) of Pathology at the University of Utah School of Medicine. She received her master’s degree in biology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and her doctorate in genetic molecular and cell biology from the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California. Dr. Nandakumar completed a fellowship in clinical chemistry at the Mayo Clinic, a research fellowship in cellular and molecular immunology at Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, and a research fellowship in infection and immunology at the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Nandakumar is certified by the American Board of Clinical Chemistry. Her research interests include autoimmune diseases, complement deficiency, and protein immunology.
