OBJECTIVE

The close association between coeliac disease and autoimmunity prompted us to perform an antibody screening for gluten-sensitive enteropathy in patients with autoimmune thyroid dysfunction.

METHODS

Sera from 220 patients with autoimmune thyroiditis, 50 euthyroid subjects with thyroid nodules and 250 blood donors were tested for IgA anti-tissue transglutaminase (anti-tTG) and antiendomysial antibodies (EmA).

RESULTS

IgA anti-tTG was positive in 7 patients with autoimmune thyroiditis, whereas IgA EmA was found only in 6 of them. Duodenal biopsy confirmed coeliac disease diagnosis disclosing marked and mild villous atrophy in 6 and 1 of them, respectively. All but 2 of the 7 coeliacs did not show any sign of malabsorption. All euthyroid controls were negative for IgA antibodies, whereas 1 blood donor, positive for both IgA anti-tTG and EmA, was found to be coeliac. The prevalence of coeliac disease in patients with autoimmune thyroiditis (3.2%) was significantly higher than that found in blood donors (0.4%) (p = 0.022, Fisher's exact test).

CONCLUSIONS

Antibody screening for coeliac disease should be included in the work-up of patients with autoimmune thyroiditis. Either IgA anti-tTG or EmA may be used, even though the former seems to be slightly more sensitive than the latter.