Screening children with type 1 diabetes for coeliac disease is controversial, because they often appear asymptomatic. Our aim was to establish whether active screening should be recommended.
This study focused on 22 children whose coeliac disease was detected by serological screening during diabetes surveillance and 498 children diagnosed because of a clinical suspicion. We compared the clinical and histological data at diagnosis and the children's adherence and responses to a gluten-free diet.
The serological screening group suffered less from decreased growth (p = 0.016) and clinical symptoms (p