The impact of a gluten-free diet on the growth pattern of Saudi children with coeliac disease.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the growth pattern of children with coeliac disease after the introduction of a gluten-free diet.

METHOD: The retrospective study was conducted at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and comprised data from January 2015 to December 2018 of children aged 2-16 years with biopsy-proven coeliac disease. Serial measurements of height-for-age and weight-for-age z-scores were recorded at 0, 4, 8, 12 and 16 months. Data on insulin-like growth factor-1 and insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 obtained at diagnosis and during follow-up was retrieved. Clinical, demographic, and laboratory data was extracted from the patients' medical files. Data was analysed using SPSS 22.

RESULTS

Of the 47 patients, 25(53.2%) were boys and 22(46.8%) were girls. The overall mean age was 8.7±3.4 years. There was a significant time effect for weight-for-age and height-for-age z-scores (p<0.001). There was significant increase in the secretion of insulin-like growth factor-1 and insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (p<0.05) during the first 8 months of a gluten-free diet.

CONCLUSIONS

The administration of gluten-free diet for Saudi children with coeliac disease normalized growth parameters and improved the endogenous secretion of growth factors.