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BACKGROUND: Both undiagnosed celiac disease and some chronic childhood diseases are associated with lower academic achievement. However, there is little knowledge of achievements in those diagnosed with celiac disease. Our aim was to investigate school achievements in upper secondary school among Swedish adolescents with celiac disease.

METHODS: We performed a retrospective cohort study using register data. We analyzed choice of upper secondary school program, completion of upper secondary school including achievements of basic eligibility for college/university, and final grade in individuals with celiac disease diagnosed before 15 years of age, born 1991-97. We compared with the Swedish population of the same birth years. Analyses were adjusted for sex, year of birth, living region at 17 years of age, and parental education as well as income.

RESULTS: The cohort included 734 074 individuals, whereof 3 257 (62% females) with celiac disease. There was no significant difference in choice of upper secondary school program. No significant difference was found in completion or achieving basic eligibility for college/university in adjusted analyses. The mean final grade in the celiac disease group was 13.34 (standard deviation 4.85) compared to 12.78 (standard deviation 5.01) in the reference population (p < 0.001), out of a maximum of 20. The effect of celiac disease on final grade remained in adjusted analyses (p = 0.012).

CONCLUSIONS: We found that diagnosed celiac disease does not negatively affect school achievements in upper secondary school. This finding suggests the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up programs of celiac disease could reverse potential deleterious academic processes.

Objectives: The aims of the study were to ascertain whether the Celiac Dietary Adherence Test (CDAT) could contribute in determining adherence to a gluten-free diet in celiac disease patients and to evaluate the diet adherence and well-being of a study population five years after a celiac disease screening known as “Exploring the Iceberg of Celiacs in Sweden”.

Methods: Through the screening, 90 adolescents (born 1997) were diagnosed with biopsy-proven celiac disease at twelve-years of age. Of them, 70 (78%) came to a five-year follow-up where anti–tissue transglutaminase antibodies 2 (TG2-IgA) was tested and a questionnaire was filled in, including CDAT, which consists of seven questions related to adherence. Non-parametrical tests were utilized to determine associations between adherence measures.

Results: Among the adolescents, 86% were adherent to a gluten-free diet five years after screening, 38% reported their general well-being as excellent, 50% very well, and 12% well. Statistically significant associations were seen between TG2-IgA and the CDAT score (p=0.033), and the self-reported adherence question and the CDAT score (p < 0.001).

Conclusions: The screening-detected adolescents reported a high level of well-being and adherence to a gluten-free diet five years after screening. We conclude that the CDAT can be used in clinical practice as an estimation of adherence to a gluten-free diet. It would be most suitable to use in conjunction with currently used adherence measures, but can also be used as a stand-alone method when others are not accessible.