[New aspects of celiac disease]

Celiac disease (CD) is an inflammatory condition of the upper small intestine which is caused by gluten ingestion in genetically susceptible patients. Over the past few years, significant changes have occurred in our understanding of CD in terms of patterns of disease expression, pathological manifestations, associated diseases, definition of high-risk patients, screening policy and diagnosis, and epidemiological, genetic, immunological and pathogenetic aspects. We review new perspectives of CD in order to enhance the familiarity of physicians with a disease that is now considered to be more common than was thought in the past.