Serum folate determinations in tracing adult coeliacs.

A simple screening test would be helpful in tracing adult coeliacs in medical practice. Results from a gastroenterological routine practice with a high detection rate of coeliac disease showed that a low concentration of serum folate was the commonest abnormality in the serum of adults with this disorder unaccompanied by dermatitis herpetiformis. It occurred in 85%, ranking with steatorrhoea in frequency, and suggests that a serum folate determination could help to refer subjects for jejunal biopsy to detect coeliac disease. In patients found to have a low serum folate recording without a known cause, the predictive value of the low value for adult coeliac disease was examined, and the findings indicate that the investigation of such patients should include jejunal biopsy.