Coeliac Disease: Diagnosis
(asked on 12th December 2024) - View Source
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the impact of diagnostic delays on the long-term health of patients with undiagnosed coeliac disease; and what steps he is taking to reduce those delays.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has guidance on the recognition, assessment, and management of coeliac disease, which is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng20
The guidance outlines a number of symptoms which are suggestive of coeliac disease and suggests that any person with these symptoms should be offered serological testing for coeliac disease. The guidance also states that first-degree relatives of people with coeliac disease should also be offered serological testing.
No formal assessment has been made of the impact of diagnostic delays on the long-term health of patients with undiagnosed coeliac disease, but the Government does recognise that patients, including those with coeliac disease. have been let down for too long whilst they wait for the care they need.
The Government is committed to putting patients first. This means making sure that patients are seen on time and ensuring that people have the best possible experience during their care.
We have made a commitment that 92% of patients should wait no longer than 18 weeks from Referral to Treatment within our first term. This includes those waiting for treatment for coeliac disease. As a first step to achieving this, following the Budget, we will deliver an additional 2 million operations, scans, and appointments across all specialities during our first year in Government, which is equivalent to 40,000 per week.
The Royal College of General Practitioners has an e-learning module on the diagnosis and management of coeliac disease and its immunological comorbidities, which is designed to raise awareness and understanding of the symptoms of coeliac disease amongst general practitioners and primary care professionals, and support early diagnosis. The e-learning module highlights that untreated coeliac disease can have important consequences, including small bowel lymphoma and osteoporosis.
The National Health Service website is also a key awareness tool and contains useful information for the public about coeliac disease, its symptoms, and how it is diagnosed and treated.