Refractory celiac disease new diagnostic approaches and current treatment

Abstract

Since refractory celiac disease (RCD) may cause severe complications and is associated with a poor prognosis in a portion of patients, early diagnosis and treatment is of importance. Current diagnostics include complex PCR-based molecular pathology and FACS techniques in order to differentiate type I and type II RCD, the latter being associated with the development of an enteropathy-associated T cell lymphoma (EATL). Recently established treatment options also include high-dose chemotherapeutic regimens for RCD type II which have significantly improved survival. However, treatment strategies are highly individual targeting also complications of malabsorption and should be started in the RCD phase of the disease. Therefore, adequate diagnostics are pivotal for patient outcome.