Who is at Risk for Celiac Disease?

In reading up on celiac disease I came across some very informative articles dealing with the question: Who is at risk for celiac disease?

According to Nancy Lapid (About.Com), there are quite a few medical conditions that put people at  higher risk for celiac disease.    3%-8% of children with type 1 diabetes and 2%-5% of adults with type 1 diabetes have been shown to have celiac disease.   1.5% -6.7% of people with thyroid disease (hypo or hyper) have celiac disease.  This is not completely unexpected as these diseases are auto-immune disorders which researchers claim are connected to one another.

2.1%-4.1% of women with infertility issues have celiac disease.  Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome are 7 times more likely to have celiac disease than the general population.  Unexplained iron deficiency might point to celiac disease.  In fact according to the Celia Disease Center at the University of Chicago the most common sign of celiac disease in adults is iron deficiency that does not respond to iron therapy.  (In children gastrointestinal signs tend to be more dominant.)  Certain liver disorders also might point to celiac disease.

Aside from these medical conditions, what is especially clear is that first and second degree relatives of patients with celiac disease are at a greater risk and should be tested.  That means that not just siblings and parents should be tested but grandparents, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and half siblings should be tested too.  There is a 1 in 22 chance that first degree relatives will develop celiac disease; Second degree relatives have a 1 in 39 chance.  Doctors might not push these relatives to get tested but in the final analysis it’s just a blood test and the repercussions of having celiac disease and not knowing it are too severe to play around with.