[Age at menarche in girls with celiac disease].

OBJECTIVES

Delayed menarche, amenorrhea, early menopause have been sporadically reported in patients with CD. But control group matched was drawn from healthy individuals.

DESIGN

The aim of this study was to investigate the age at menarche in patients with CD and in mothers of patients.

MATERIALS: 59 mother/daughter pairs; daughter with coeliac disease: 49--treated with a gluten-free diet [FGD (+)] and 10 with untreated or late onset coeliac disease [FGD (-)].

METHODS

CD was diagnosed on the basis of ESPGAN criteria. All patients and mothers were asked for information on the age at menarche.

RESULTS

The mean age of menarche was significantly higher in FGD (-): girls--mean 16.16 years and mother's--mean 15.49 years, than in FGD (+) patients. The mean age of menarche in FGD (+) patients and mother's were: 12.33 and 13.82 years respectively in the country (11 pairs), 13.08 and 13.49 years respectively in the little town (19 pairs), 12.90 and 13.33 years respectively in the town (19 pairs).

CONCLUSIONS

The age at menarche in patients with CD and FGD is decreased to age at menarche in mother's, but is higher in the untreated CD patients and mother's. These findings support the hypothesis that the age at menarche in girls with coeliac disease is regulated by gluten-free diet and by other genetic and environmental factors.