title: The changing clinical profile of celiac disease: a 15-year experience (1998-2012) in an Italian referral center.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Celiac disease is a multiform, challenging condition characterized by extremely variable features. Our goal was to define clinical, serological and histopathological findings in a large cohort of celiacs diagnosed in a single referral center.
  
  
  METHODS
  From January 1998 to December 2012, 770 patients (599 females, median age 36 years, range 18-78 years) were diagnosed as celiacs at St. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital (Bologna, Italy). The clinical phenotypes were classified as: 1) classical (malabsorption syndrome); 2) non-classical (extraintestinal and/or gastrointestinal symptoms other than diarrhea); 3) subclinical. Serology, duodenal histology, comorbidities, response to gluten-free diet and complications were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Disease onset was symptomatic in 610 patients (79%), while 160 celiacs showed a subclinical phenotype. In the symptomatic group the non-classical prevailed over the classical phenotype (66% vs 34%). Diarrhea was found in 27%, while other gastrointestinal manifestations were bloating (20%), aphthous stomatitis (18%), alternating bowel habit (15%), constipation (13%) and gastroesophageal reflux disease (12%). Extraintestinal manifestations included osteopenia/osteoporosis (52%), anemia (34%), cryptogenic hypertransaminasemia (29%) and recurrent miscarriages (12%). Positivity for IgA tissue transglutaminase antibodies was detected in 97%. Villous atrophy was found in 87%, while 13% had minor lesions consistent with potential celiac disease. A large proportion of patients showed autoimmune disorders, i.e. autoimmune thyroiditis (26.3%), dermatitis herpetiformis (4%) and diabetes mellitus type 1 (3%). Complicated celiac disease was very rare.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study demonstrates that the clinical profile of celiac disease changed over time with an increasing rate of non-classical and subclinical phenotypes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Bologna, S,Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Bldg #5 Via Massarenti 9, Bologna, 40138, Italy. umberto.volta@aosp.bo.it.
authors.forename: Umberto
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Volta
authors.forename: Giacomo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Caio
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Stanghellini
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: De Giorgio
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002446:Celiac Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000178:diet therapy; D055050:Diet, Gluten-Free; D004386:Duodenum / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012698:Serologic Tests; D055815:Young Adult