By Jason Clevenger
Summary: A group of Swedish researchers published a study examining the risk of mortality associated with type 1 diabetes and celiac disease. In the study, the lifespan of 960 patients diagnosed with both type 1 diabetes and biopsy-proven celiac disease were compared with the general population. The authors discovered no increased risk of death within the first five years following a celiac disease diagnosis, but an almost three-fold risk 15 years post-diagnosis.
Conclusion: The authors suggest that the excess risk of death for long-term celiac disease patients with type 1 diabetes may be related to persistent low-level inflammatory activity in the gut even after years of following the gluten-free diet. Many cases might also be related simply to poor adherence to the diet. The authors propose close, long-term monitoring of patients with these two conditions.
[1] “Long-term coeliac disease influences risk of death in patients with type 1 diabetes.”, Mollazadegan K, Sanders DS, Ludvigsson J, Ludvigsson JF, #Journal of Internal Medicine# 2013 Sep; 274(3):273-80.
