[Study of intestinal permeability in celiac disease with 51 Cr-EDTA]

Intestinal permeability was studied in a group of 10 children diagnosed of coeliac disease either when they presented an intestinal villi atrophy while receiving a gluten-containing diet and after, when they had a normal mucosa with the withdrawal of gluten from the diet. Ten healthy children served as controls. The 51 Cr-EDTA (51 Cr-ethylenediaminetetraacetate) was used as probe molecule and it was administered orally. Its urinary excretion showed clear differences between patients with an altered intestinal biopsy and those with a normal histopathology. The excretion of 51 Cr-EDTA remained elevated in celiac patients with a gluten-free diet and normal villi.